The pain of being unemployed goes far beyond then messing with an individual psychologically. Some of the results of being unemployed can be both seen and felt. It can cause stress-related health problems such as high blood pressure, headaches, insomnia, diabetes and in extreme cases, individuals can be even exposed to heart diseases. We tend to underestimate how social media can help in building successful businesses and ultimately reduce unemployment.
First, we need to stop treating the issue of unemployment as an isolated problem. Yes, one unemployed person will not impact the whole community, but if we start talking about large numbers, we have a big problem. The high unemployment rates that we have been seeing over the years have led to some serious societal issues, which include increased poverty rates and poorer neighbourhoods. Because of this problem, a lot of communities have limited employment opportunities, underfunded schools, low-quality housing, a few recreational activities, as well as limited access to public services and transportation. These conditions can lead to the unemployed finding unconventional and illegal ways to make money, leading to increased crime rates and escalated violence within the society.
Apart from individuals and societies, unemployment greatly impacts the economy. When people have no jobs, they have no money, which results in people spending less and minimally contributing to the economy in relation to purchasing any goods and services produced. They have reduced purchasing power which can affect companies and leave them with decreased revenue.
To contribute to tackling the issue of unemployment, Digitise SA together with Seda hosted a successful Youth Day Event. The event focused on how to make money using content creation on social media, with industry experts sharing some tricks of the trade.
The panel unpacked various business and social media-related aspects that can help the youth and our entrepreneurs’ leverage over the power of social media.
Business Development is vital for any start-up including large corporations. It is important that entrepreneurs understand that for the success of their business they need to formulate strategic partnerships and develop objectives that are tied to sales growth, business expansion, and increased profitability. It is about being strategic and creating a wide scope of ideas, activities, and initiatives that are integrated with the entrepreneur’s business growth objectives.
Protecting your content goes without saying. Remember your content and brand are essential to the success of your business. Our speakers tapped into the importance of guarding against content theft because, I mean, there are a lot of ways that pirates can take advantage of your content and use or distribute it illegally across the web.
Submitting tax returns is not only a sign that you are a responsible individual but makes it easier for both you and your business to enter subsequent transactions. Maintaining an unbroken filing record will put SARS officials off your radar because, one, you are not hiding any information from them and secondly it shows that you are a good citizen and contributing towards society.
How you charge your clients can make or break your business. Be reasonable and remember that results drive pricing. Figuring your rates is not easy but never undersell yourself for short-term gains. There are several ways to make money online and consider your service offering as an investment rather than a cost. It all comes down to research, you do not want to overcharge your clients and break your brand, but you also do not want to come across as cheap and barely breakeven.
Communicating with your target audience is not easy. People are generally difficult and will give time to whom they want to give their time. You cannot force them to listen to you which then makes it vital for you and your business to implement winning strategies that will assist you in creating compelling content that will keep your audience engaged. Here is where you take advantage of social media and use marketing and branding strategies to boost your chances of your content going viral.
Making money through YouTube and LinkedIn was another core focus for the Digitise SA and Seda event. Joining the YouTube Partner Programme earns you some money, it is not a walk down the park, but the hard work definitely pays off. Once in the programme you have the opportunity to make advertising revenue, gain channel memberships that pay for your content, get Super Chat and Super Stickers where fans pay for their comments to be highlighted in chat streams, and among other things, you have the opportunity to receive YouTube Premium Revenue.
LinkedIn on the other hand allows you to make money as a freelancer. A freelancer is someone who performs a service for a fee and to be successful, you first need to select a niche. Whether you are extremely skilled in graphic design, digital marketing, or web development, select an area of focus and capitalise on that. Create a phenomenal LinkedIn profile to attract your clients and clearly articulate your service offering so the people know exactly what they are buying into. Lastly, join LinkedIn Groups and actively engage in what the people are saying because a large pool of your customers are members of these groups.
The aim of this event was for Digitise SA and Seda to provide the necessary tools for our youth and entrepreneurs to hit the ground running and leverage of social media to make money. We believe in equipping our entrepreneurs with the right knowledge and skills so they can be successful and employ at least one person. The goal has always been to make a difference, one individual or start-up at a time.
