The “What Is Social?" MOOC is for business owners, executives, and marketing professionals who want to significantly improve their abilities to grow their social strategy using effective, proven methodologies. This hands on, "how to" program won’t just tell you how to grow your professional persona using social – you will actually do it! This course is the first in the six-course specialization, Social Media Marketing: How to Profit in a Digital World.
This course is part of the Social Media Marketing Specialization
Offered By
About this Course
Skills you will gain
- Social Marketing
- Social Network
- Social Media Marketing
- Social Media
Offered by

Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research and teaching university with campuses in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, and Doha, Qatar. Northwestern combines innovative teaching and pioneering research in a highly collaborative environment that transcends traditional academic boundaries.
Syllabus - What you will learn from this course
Introduction to Social Marketing
In this first module, you will learn about the goals, structure, and deliverables of the Social Marketing Specialization MOOCs, as well as gain an understanding of how the MOOCs in the Specialization will each build on one another to create a truly unique and immediately applicable experience.
Social Trends
In this module, you will learn not only how the digital revolution has disrupted the marketplace, but also how you can make sense of this disrupted digital world.
The Business of Social
In this module, you will learn how to view social as holistic, consumer/stakeholder focused, flexible, global, real-time and integrated. You will then complete a peer review assignment which will ask you to define your target audience on social.
Social Overview
In this module, you will learn to understand the importance of big data and how to deal with all of the quickly changing social sites used today. You will also learn the difference between social networks and communities as well as the reasons that they form. Then, you will set up the social sites that you will use throughout the Specialization.
Reviews
- 5 stars73.47%
- 4 stars19.28%
- 3 stars4.54%
- 2 stars1.37%
- 1 star1.32%
TOP REVIEWS FROM WHAT IS SOCIAL?
Found the courses to have been very helpful and informative. I know how to implement it to not only my brand but also help other's who may need some advise in how to start theirs. Thank you again!!
This class has been an eye opener for me thus far. I'm enjoying learning all the how to of Social Media. I am looking forward to getting through all the MOOC's and start my new career online.
It was probably one of the best MOOC's I've ever attended! Sir Randy did a great job explaining everything, accompanied by excellent slides which made me understand the course more! Excellent course!
It's good and inspiring. But I would say the contents covered are a little general.\n\nHowever, I would expect this whole specification will help me go deeper into social media marketing.
About the Social Media Marketing Specialization
In a 2018 survey of businesses, Buffer found that only 29% had effective social media marketing programs. A recent survey of consumers by Tomoson found 92% of consumers trust recommendations from other people over brand content, 70% found consumer reviews to be their second most trusted source, 47% read blogs developed by influencers and experts to discover new trends and new ideas and 35% used blogs to discover new products and services. Also, 20% of women who used social considered products promoted by bloggers they knew. Today, businesses and consumers use social media to make their purchase decisions.

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