MA 2024 CREATIVE SOCIAL MEDIA
Course Convenor: Christopher Hogg (Chris.Hogg@rhul.ac.uk)
Office Hours (Wed 1-5pm – By Appointment Only - Room AG 12
Classes take place on Thursday Morning 10 – 1pm in CA LAB 008

COURSE AIMS:
The next 12 weeks is an amazing opportunity to go deep in a vast and ever-changing subject. But, don’t be daunted, that’s my job. You will leave with the skills to be able to judge future developments. Till then, relax, in the end, social media is simple. It is real people talking to real people, they just use a computer to do so.
Aside from the course outline, I have a personal aim. That is to make you cutting edge Social Media Artists. In the last month alone, Facebook launched dating functionality and released a cryptocurrency called Libra that could be the first world-currency.


LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Creatively employ a given range of social media production practices and techniques effectively, using industry standard applications and tools across a range of platforms relevant to the subject effectively.
Demonstrate an understanding of the idea of ‘Native’ Advertising and ‘Content Marketing’.
Plan, create, upload and optimize a ‘live’ digital festival on one social media network.
Demonstrate the process of creating a digital brand for a product, personal brand for an artist, fashion brand, festival, or event.
Demonstrate the ability to ‘go live’ on Facebook or Instagram using a two-camera set-up.
Demonstrate a critical knowledge and understanding of key theoretical and contextual dimensions of social media and how this informs practice.


STRUCTURE:
Week 1
Introduction: How does Online Marketing Work in an age of information excess? Creating a community of learners. Learning about the Attention Economy.
Week 2
What does the history of Social media tell us about the nature of the medium?
Week 3
The Big Social Networks: What Makes Them Unique? What makes them the same?
Week 4
How does video work on Social Media? The role of live Broadcasting in the future of Social Media.
Week 5
What role does Social Capital in building a following and creating influence. Influencer Marketing. Crowd funding.
Week 6
How to Tell Good Stories Online. The theory of personal branding.
Week 7
Blogging as an audience growing tool. Using free online data to understand your audience.
Creating customer avatars.
Week 8
Instagram masterclass.
Week 9
Paid for Social Media - How to run a social media campaign and how to analyse results.
Week 10
Student Presentations: Rationales behind their digital festival idea.
Week 11
The future of Social Media. Digital Playgrounds and VR

ASSESSMENT DETAILS
There are two assessments on this course.
a) Project Plan for a digital festival (25%) - Due Date: Monday 28th of October
b) Digital Festival (75%) - Due Date: Tuesday 10th of December
The URL's of the Social Media Accounts is to be placed on a word document and uploaded on Turnitin.

ATTENDANCE
Attendance at lectures, seminars and screenings is compulsory. Attendance at screenings and seminars will be audited, and an attendance rate of at least 70% is a precondition for your being assessed on the course. Leave of absence on medical or other grounds can only be granted by the Head of Department, Jonathan Powell, and only on production of an appropriate written explanation (e.g. a letter from your doctor, probation officer or lawyer). If there is an ongoing problem that persistently affects your ability to do your work, you should let your personal advisor know as soon as possible, so that we can make suitable provision. Don’t just let things slide and assume that sooner or later we’ll notice—unfortunately, we cannot always be there to observe these things.


SUBMISSION
All late submissions will be penalised in the following way:
(i) for work submitted up to twenty-four hours late, the mark will be automatically reduced by ten percent.
(ii) for work submitted more than twenty-four hours late, the mark will be zero.


EXTENSION INFORMATION
PLAGIARISM INFORMATION
BEHAVIOUR IN LECTURES