Strategies for Social Media Marketing as a Tool for Networking and Career Development for Universities and Students: A Case Study of USIU

A project Report submitted to the Chandaria School of Business in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of Executive Masters in Organization Development (EMOD)The major purpose of this study was to determine the strategies for social media marketing as a tool for networking and career development for universities and students using the case study of the United States International University (USIU), Africa. Specifically the study sought to determine: the opportunities the university can get through the social media marketing, the challenges that affect implementation of social media marketing strategies for the university and the strategies for running an effective social media marketing campaign in universities? The study used a descriptive research design. The study population comprised of staff, alumni and students of USIU. Primary and secondary data were equally collected. Primary data was collected using questionnaire that was delivered to the respondents by the researcher in person. The information was analyzed using percentages and frequencies in SPSS and presented in tables. In relation to the opportunities the university could get through Social Media Marketing (SMM), the study revealed that SMM provided opportunities for university students to develop their careers and network. The findings of the study have established that SMM provides universities with a broad range of unique opportunities in various ways. SMM provides an additional channel of communication between students and university administration. It provides access to quick information and regular updates on what is happening in the university. The study also established that SMM provides opportunities for prospective students to learn about USIU. On the aspect of the major challenges affecting the implementation of SMM, the study revealed that there was need for well trained personnel, adequate infrastructure and resources to manage SM accounts. These issues and others discussed in this research paper negatively affected and barred the implementation of effective SMM in the university. The study also revealed that university should have clear and manageable goals to support effective SMM aligned with mission, vision and core values of the university. The university should also create more awareness on SMM in campus to increase acceptance of social media marketing. The study established that SMM works well if adequate resources such as (user-access) gadgets (e.g. compatible phones, laptops and tablets), efficient network infrastructures are in place, and skilled personnel are hired to administer the system, to ensure efficiency and effectiveness. The major conclusion of the study was that effective SMM provided universities opportunities to connect with the students and alumni, to market the college, to provide opportunities for students and faculty to interact or to increase retention and graduation rates. SMM provides the opportunity to engage students in an exclusive way and solicit ideas, opinion, criticism, and support on a totally open and accessible set of platforms. The study also concluded that SMM provided universities with an additional channel of communication hence improving regular updates and quick access to useful information. The study concluded that universities need clear and manageable goals to support effective SMM aligned with mission, vision and core values of the university. The study also concluded that Social media platforms can enlighten the research process in universities helping faculty in the promotion of the published works done in school. The study recommends that universities should adopt SMM to improve communications, career growth and networking among the students, graduates, alumni, prospective employees. The study recommends that SMM awareness should be given more attention and its benefits advocated extensively to universities; universities should create more forums to enhance campaign for effective and active SMM. The study also recommends that the university marketing teams should encourage present students and future students to contribute content that is beneficial to the university. Research is recommended on the successful experience of using social media marketing by other universities around the world. A further study is also recommended to examine how other service sectors, industries, organizations and business think of social networking sites broadly and how they can impact their sectors