Developing engaging content is no easy task. Repeatedly, we are asked “why don’t you do this or do that?” More than once, social media has been the subject to of that question. My answer is that we do not have the capacity and capability to deliver extremely high content on a consistent manner. I think this should be the goal of all social media projects.

Over the last month, we have launched our first foray into social media with the Werth Institute’s LinkedIn page – Please Follow US!

Key to that effort was the creation of this blog, and it was kicked off with UConn School of Engineering alum and CEO of Upside Business Travel Scott Case’s first two pieces. We are confident that we can obtain thought leadership of very high quality from our collection of student, faculty, and alumni that will contribute through a process designed to capture each blog piece with a 2 hour contribution of time and knowledge. Why did we do this?

Why?

Why are we doing a blog? I always think it is important to know why you do things. Often overlooked or forgotten when organizations make decisions is the why. As a rule for any entrepreneur, knowing the why is essential. The why carries you through when you do not want to do something.

• Engagement: We are looking for ways to engage alumni in the Werth Institute process that is both enjoyable and valuable for them. Allowing alum, students, and faculty to share their expertise in an easy platform that lives beyond the initial point achieves this goal.
• Consistent Content: An editorial calendar that allows us to publish an article every two weeks guarantees that we can sustain interest in our LinkedIn page.
• Audience Generation: Every blog, podcast, website, etc. relies on audience generation from one of two sources: organic or paid. Having different authors that engage with me to create this content not only increases the touch points, but it also increases the number of shares … people are generally proud of what they contributed and will want to share that material.
• Knowledge Curation: Our faculty, students, and alum have a great deal of knowledge around technology, entrepreneurship, and finance. Curation and sharing of that knowledge benefits the readers of today, but also the most ambitious of students in the future.

The Werth Institute Thought Leader’s Blog

There is no rush to contribute, but please consider following and recommending. When you are ready to contribute a few hours over a month long time, please reach out and offer to contribute. The initial audience is UConn alum and students whom are interested in entrepreneurial activities. Proper topics include the role of entrepreneurial mindset in your career journey, subject matter expertise relevant to technology, entrepreneurship, and finance.

The process will include a recorded interview with someone (most likely me) that includes probes. We hope each interview results in 2 or 3 blog posts that can be completed over a year or two. After the recorded interview, we will have it transcribed so the author will begin to outline the particular blog piece that was unearthed. Finally, it will be completed with the help of staff on proofreading and final copy.

Anything worth doing is worth doing well. Unfortunately, we do not have the capacity to do things well. If we put Werth Institute resources to work on something, we need to be outstanding. We are not afraid to take chances and fail, we just want to prioritize things that have impact on students AND we can deliver a level of excellence that equates to the Werth Institute brand.

The Werth Institute is very excited for the opportunity to engage along these goals and parameters. As we build audience, we believe that will open future content creation options.

Advice for Entrepreneurs

There is no easy way to success. Social media requires a strategy and a commitment of resources to do well. If it is a core part of your business strategy, you will need to contribute the resources, both time and money, to do it at a level of excellence that breaks through the noise. Please discuss this with an expert as you begin to launch your campaigns!