The summer of 2011, I interned at a web design and digital advertising agency on Broadway. I wrote about it in 2017 — mostly concerning my weird, labor rights-skirting boss who inspired me to quit halfway through (girlboss slay!). But recently, while considering my day job prospects as a comms professional, I’ve been meditating on how strange it was to work in social media at that time. I was the proverbial unpaid social media intern people still, however erroneously, reference when something goes awry on Twitter. Now social pros are armed with more platforms, tools and strategy than my lil’ mind could’ve fathomed. But back then? Oh, baby — it was the Wild West. And it was sort of beautiful.
Let me set the scene. I’m Googling “What is SEO?” while the Broadway theater across the street is locked down so the Obamas can see Sister Act. We had a lending library from which I’d “check out” books like Social Media Marketing For Dummies and The Ultimate Guide To Blogging to study per the internship requirements (insane but admittedly informative). A LiveJournal devotee, I was delighted to learn that “blog” is a shortening of weblog. Complete nobodies could become blogosphere famous through enough back linking, posting and commenting. The idea of amassing an online following — via social media or otherwise — was fringe. Branding yourself as a subject matter/industry expert was a nascent concept, but most people’s social content remained a) innocuous b) relatively anonymous. A small minority of people made a living blogging, which would give way to the blog-to-book deal deluge of the early aughts, but no one identified as a content creator yet. The assessment I took to secure the role, which no one else had passed before, included questions about Digg.
Much of my time was spent researching social strategy, which was so rudimentary at the time as to be laughable. We’re talking high-level concepts like “follow people back” and “don’t tweet too much; it’s annoying.” Besides putting these strategies into practice across Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc., I also engaged in such dignified activities as:
—adding the former legendary sex club Le Trapeze to Google Places
—trawling Twitter hashtags for sales “leads” (mostly users who wanted a website or logo done)
—desperately developing a strategy for more people to “Like” the Facebook page of an Ethiopian restaurant
—writing SEO blog posts about, like, lithium batteries and the best tablets to buy
—managing Kenan Thompson’s Facebook and Twitter pages because, according to my boss, he hated social media lol
—writing fake negative reviews* of restaurants in NYC on a website designed to funnel disgruntled former employees to labor law firms (our clients)
While I learned a lot about the Internet and digital communication, I didn’t take away many concrete skills beyond using Hootsuite and writing fanfic from the POV of a sexually harassed Hooters waitress. Social was still largely uncharted territory and massive innovations were happening in real time. But two things remain true, I think: connecting with people online requires data + human insights. That second part is crucial; it’s not just about the numbers! And secondly, the quality of engagement with your followers is just as important as your reach. Purchasing followers to boost growth is a waste of time…and yes, people were doing it back then, too.
*this is libel I’m pretty sure
Recommendations
Jennette McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died
I’ll probably go long on this one next week (and discuss it in relation to one of my favorite documentaries, The Hollywood Complex), but for now I’ll just say: holy shit. Despite all the media coverage of Jennette’s experiences as a child actor at her abusive mother’s behest, many aspects of this book still shocked me. Debra McCurdy immediately comes across as a modern day Mommie Dearest figure, shepherding Jennette through the business with the intensity of a Romanian gymnastics coach. Huge shoutout to my parents, who flat-out denied my requests for head shots and an agent at age five. That’s love.
Wanda Sykes: I’m an Entertainer
In a more just world, Wanda would have Dave Chappelle and Chris Rock’s careers combined. Alas. Wanda stays busy minding her business, developing projects and releasing a fantastic new special every few years. Her latest for Netflix made me snort-laugh alone in my apartment.
Joseph Shepherd’s Exposed series
Joseph Shepherd gets the tea in this revealing interview series with RuPaul’s Drag Race queens — including the controversial King James (fka Tyra Sanchez). Joseph asks the questions on everybody’s lips and I’ve never seen former contestants answer so candidly…minus Willam, who’d burst into flames if she tried entering the World of Wonder studios at this point.
Shameless Self-Promotion
I was lucky enough to co-star in a second round of Harris Alterman’s hilarious man on the street parody sketches. You can pry the sweaty wigs I roll around in 200, 300 times a day out of my moist, pruned hands 💦
You Should Also Be Reading…
I value Lizzie’s witty, incisive takes on everything from PR e-mails to Veronica Mars. She’s also enviably consistent with her output. Recommended for sure!
Bye gay!
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