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reality BYTES
20 December 2009 By Adrian Weckler
The Public Relations Institute of Ireland (PRII) is offering a course and a certificate in social media.
The course will take place over four days in early 2010 and costs €1,800 (or €1,450 for PRII members).
This seems like very good value. It is not easy to enter the world of social media. Facebook, MySpace and Twitter are baffling.
You cannot simply log on, register for free and start exploring.
One wrong word and the internet could turn against you. One misguided click and you could be facing the ruination of your company, the obliteration of your reputation and even the loss of your liberty. That’s right:
the police could intervene.
So why take a chance?
The internet and social media are very frightening and enormously complicated.
And they are minefields. They are the Wild West. That is why it is far better to have the presence and guidance of an expert to get you through the whole experience, with handouts, cappuccinos and reassuring suits. Another reason for getting a certificate in social media is US President Barack Obama.
He did social media. And look where he is now.
A certificate in social media is highly respected in Irish business circles. Despite the recession and the near-collapse of our industrial base, major Irish companies are known to be paying big money for social media graduates. The combination of internet browsing, tweeting and Facebooking skills are acknowledged as a prize asset for under-pressure Irish firms.
‘‘One of our aims in 2010 is to open three new airline routes in eastern Europe," said Michael O’Leary, chief executive of Ryanair, the ‘no-frills’ airline.
‘‘But we won’t even consider embarking on that journey without someone who knows which Mafia Wars tribes are worth joining or which Miley Cyrus Twitter accounts are real and which ones are false.
‘‘Our company is all about the bottom line. And how can you deliver that if you don’t know how to organise a Tweet-up? So if you’re applying for a job with us and don’t have a social media cert, sod off. If you do, welcome to Europe’s fastest growing airline."
Other influential business and financial commentators are equally forthright.
This newspaper’s economic columnist, David McWilliams, is believed to have signed a six-figure deal with Penguin International for an upcoming book, provisionally entitled If You Can’t Stand The Tweet, Get Out Of The Market.
The PRII’s social media division is understood to be considering a follow-up course in the summer of 2010.
The purpose of the course is believed to be an exploration of how hardcore online gaming can realise significant relationships with core target demographics for Irish organisations. The course will offer a diploma in online gaming and will be conducted over four nights (1.30am to 5.30am) entirely over Xbox Live.
The diploma will be awarded to candidates who pass a fragging quota, with a bonus qualification awarded to applicants who succeed in hotwiring their devices to download Film Four movies.
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