About the Episode
About the Episode:
In this episode, Kate Meyers Emery, Ph.D., joins Jenny Li Fowler to share her journey into social media management and her strategic approach to the field. As Candid’s Senior Digital Communications Manager, Kate frequently leverages experimentation and data-driven storytelling to connect with audiences. She highlights successful campaigns and strategies, offering advice on how to turn failures into valuable lessons.
Key Takeaways
- Think Strategically: Approach social media strategy like a roadmap, defining clear goals and adjusting based on analytics and experimentation.
- Embed Experimentation: Regularly test new ideas to identify what works, maintaining a flexible strategy that adapts to trends and audience behavior.
- Embrace Failure: Reframe failure as a learning opportunity; every experiment, even unsuccessful ones, yields valuable insights.
- Data-Driven Decisions: Use metrics to validate decisions and gain leadership buy-in for new initiatives or adjustments to existing practices.
- Establish Boundaries: For long-term sustainability, set boundaries to manage social media’s impact on mental health, such as removing personal social media apps.
Episode Summary
How Experimentation Fuels Social Media Strategies
Dr. Kate Meyers Emery emphasizes the importance of weaving experimentation into social media management. At Candid, experiments are treated as deliberate, time-limited trials designed to test hypotheses. By framing industry advice as questions—“Should we be doing this?”—Kate builds experiments to validate (or debunk) trends and so-called “best practices.”
For example, when short-form video became a popular recommendation, Candid conducted a three-month experiment to assess its feasibility and impact. While the experiment doubled engagement, the team learned it wasn’t sustainable given current resources. This data informed a revised approach: producing fewer videos without sacrificing quality or engagement.
Creativity and Collaboration in Experimentation
Kate’s experiments aren’t random—they are structured to align with Candid’s overarching goals. By maintaining a flexible, living strategy document, her team adapts to evolving social media landscapes while staying focused on key metrics like link clicks and engagement.
She highlights the value of collaboration, both in designing experiments and gaining buy-in. Clear communication with leadership, paired with data-backed results, helps frame experiments as opportunities for growth rather than risks.
Prioritizing Mental Health in Social Media Management
Kate candidly discusses the emotional toll of social media management, sharing her personal decision to remove social media apps from her phone. This boundary has helped her avoid burnout and maintain creativity in her role. She encourages other social media managers to explore similar guardrails to ensure long-term sustainability in their careers.
Experimentation in Practice: Kate’s Top Tips
- Start with a Question: Use industry advice or trends as a starting point to frame your experiments.
- Define Success Metrics: Clearly outline what success looks like, such as engagement increases or resource efficiency.
- Adjust Based on Findings: Use data to iterate your strategy, dropping tactics that don’t work and scaling up those that do.
- Communicate Transparently: Educate leadership and colleagues about the purpose and potential outcomes of experiments to build trust and understanding.
- Prioritize Well-Being: Set boundaries to maintain a healthy relationship with social media
About the Show: Confessions of a Higher Ed Social Media Manager covers the do's, don'ts, and dynamics of the complex and challenging social media ecosystem. We analyze the successes and failures of those in the higher education social space — what went right, what went wrong, and what are the lessons learned. We’ll share actionable steps so you can push past the pitfalls others have faced. No matter if you're on a team of 20 or a team of one, we've got you covered. Confessions of a Higher Ed Social Media Manager is hosted by Jenny Li Fowler and is a proud member of the Enrollify Podcast Network.
Connect With Our Host:
Jenny Li Fowler
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennylifowler/
https://twitter.com/TheJennyLi
About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
Confessions of a Higher Ed Social Media Manager is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows, too!
Some of our favorites include Higher Ed Pulse and Confessions of a Higher Ed CMO.
Enrollify is produced by Element451 — the next-generation AI student engagement platform helping institutions create meaningful and personalized interactions with students. Learn more at element451.com.
Element451 is hosting the AI Engage Summit on Oct 29 and 30. Register now for this free, virtual event.The future of higher ed is being redefined by the transformative power of AI. The AI Engage Summit brings together higher ed leaders, innovators, and many of your favorite Enrollify creators to explore AI’s impact on student engagement, enrollment marketing, and institutional success.
Experience firsthand how AI is improving content personalization at scale, impacting strategic decision-making, and intuitively automating the mundane tasks that consume our time. The schedule is packed with real examples and case studies, so you leave knowing how to harness AI to drive meaningful change at your institution.
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