MUISCD conducts a Digital Media Seminar on Social Media 101 in collaboration with Dubai International Academic City and Dubai Studio City

The seminar, part of a series of talks in the field of Digital Media organized by Murdoch Dubai, took place on the 23rd of June 2009 at 6.30pm at the Dubai Knowledge Village Conference Centre and was attended by students, media and marketing professionals as well as small business owners.

The talk which was titled ‘Social Media 101, Bootcamp for Businesses’, guided individuals and businesses interested in learning how to understand the relationship between Social Media and successful marketing and communications campaigns. It explained how businesses can come to grips with the enormous amount of tools available online with, according to the latest statistics, some nine million blogs on the web so far, 200 million active Facebook users, three million tweets a day and about 70 million uploaded videos on YouTube.

Social Media expert Akanksha Goel brought the audience up-to-date with the basics of Web 2.0 and talked about how businesses can start to think strategically about Social Media.

“Web 2.0 has made marketing no longer just about making and selling but about sensing and responding. The consumer has more power today and, instead of seeing that as a problem, companies need to realise the immense potential and opportunities that social media offers. “ said Goel.

"The old web was about commerce, the new web is about people. It is not just a fad, but a fundamental shift in the way people communicate. Businesses now need to start thinking strategically about adopting and taking part in the conversations happening online. Social media is not an ideology, it is a tool, and the businesses that harness its power, will succeed in the new economy”.

Raghav Lal, Strategy and Business Development Manager from Murdoch Dubai, said in response to the success of the two seminars already organized on Social Media, the university will aim to start regular monthly sessions in the near future to accommodate this demand.

• Click here to download Akanksha Goel’s presentation.