Nik Scott has been the Social Media Strategist for the University of Denver for the past three years. At this year’s Digital Summit conference in Phoenix, she spoke about how businesses can incorporate video into their social media campaigns. After the conference, we talked with Nik about her Digital Summit experience and her work for DU.
- Pennington Creative: Can you tell me a little bit about what you do for the University of Denver?
- Nik Scott: My job is more complex than one might think, but to simplify, I currently lead social media strategy for the university. I’m responsible for managing the day-to-day tasks of the social team and for setting the integrative strategy for university-wide campaigns and social media initiatives. Much of the work I do consists of counseling, advising and training stakeholders across campus about social media updates, best practices and trends. I monitor and oversee more than 1,000 DU-branded social media accounts and serve as the point for crisis and brand reputation as well as liaise between clients and internal teams.
- PC: What are the greatest challenges you’ve faced as a marketing professional?
- NS: I work on the digital side of marketing, and in our world, things change fast! I’d say the greatest challenge for me, that has been pretty consistent over my career, is finding the right balance between the daily responsibilities of my role and the necessary time it takes to stay current and knowledgeable about the latest digital marketing trends.
- PC: What do you see as the most important digital marketing trend of the moment?
- NS: As my focus in the digital space is branding and social media, I’d say the most important digital trend at the moment is personalization. While this trend will ultimately become a mainstay on the digital side, personalization is something that translates across all marketing functions—be it storytelling, user journeys or email. Our audiences increasingly want to know “why should I care?” Personalizing their experiences will speak to these audiences where they are and in a way that engages them.
- PC: I’ve heard differing opinions on the importance that voice search is going to play in the future of SEO. What is your perspective?
- NS: First of all, as a consumer, I love voice search! It’s convenient and takes less time than typing, plus it’s just cool! In terms of the importance voice search will play in the future of SEO, it will be extremely important. Voice search is on the top of every 2018 trends list for a reason. It’s going to change the way we build websites and other digital architecture at the foundation. Artificial intelligence like voice search isn’t going anywhere, if anything it’s going to get more sophisticated. As digital marketers, it’s our job to make sure we anticipate “earth shattering” changes in our industry like this so that our audiences maintain the best experiences possible and so we can retain and grow our market share.
- PC: Was this your first Digital Summit conference?
- NS: Yes, this was my first Digital Summit conference. I will be attending three others this year—Seattle, LA and Denver—to present my session on “The Power of Video.”
- PC: What sessions—or any other aspect of the conference—did you most enjoy this year?
- NS: The aspect of the conference that I liked the most was how diverse the attendance was. There were men and women of all ages and across all industries hungry to hear the latest ideas about what’s happening in digital marketing and how it impacts them. The presenters were knowledgeable, and many left the participants with action items for them to take back to their teams.
Check out Pennington Creative’s upcoming blogs for more about this year’s Digital Summit Phoenix! If you’d like to drop us a line, contact us today through our website.
