By: James Sweeney, Account Executive
Last month, 330 communications professionals across Wales came together for a day filled with fantastic sessions, brilliant conversations and inspiring people in the Swansea Arena. Organised by Alun and Elan, Co-Owners of digital creative agency Libera, Social Media Conference Cymru is the highlight of any Welsh social media professional’s calendar.
Having attended last year's inaugural conference, I was curious to see how this year’s was going to turn out, and it did not disappoint in the slightest! With this in mind, let’s take a look at some of my highlights from 2024’s SMCC:
The Great British Bake-Off - A social showstopper?
Ben Rawson-Jones, the genius behind social media campaigns at The Great British Bank-Off, the Crown and Eastenders, among many more, ran a session all about engaging with audiences beyond the TV screen. His talk was centred around how social media is not a science, it’s an art.
Effective communication should directly reach out to real people, with a structure that includes vital elements such as emotions, feelings, creativity, connection and humanity. You should always put the ‘social’ back into ‘social media’, connecting to genuine people as real people.
Making a career in the digital age
Mared Parry, Deputy Social Media Manager at Hearst UK, Tiffany Jones, Social Media Manager at Six Nations Rugby, and Beth Thomas, Director of Social Media Operations at Frankly, led a session on “So You Want to be a Social Media Manager? Making a Career in the Digital Age”.
The session discussed key trends and advice for upcoming social media professionals, breaking down how you can keep up with the latest news and developments within the comms landscape. They also shared tips for managing stress, how each spokesperson progressed in their careers and some of the most rewarding aspects of their roles.
The power of community
Chelsea Pinches-Burrowes, Owner of WCS AGENCY and Cardiff Life magazine, took to the stage to discuss “Is Print Dead? Using Social to Boost Magazine Readership”. Chelsea took over ownership of Cardiff Life in May 2023 and has done a fantastic job of scaling its reach both online and in print format. How did she and the team do this? One keyword - community.
Chelsea identified that what made Cardiff Life special was the local magic/speciality of its raison d'être, its focus on the local news, community and updates from within Cardiff. She and the team took time out of their diaries to sit down and genuinely understand what content the locals of Cardiff wanted to see, which they then built into a content plan which is regularly reviewed and updated, to maximise content delivery.
While this may seem simple, the results well and truly speak for themselves. Cardiff Life has become such a strong Welsh publication, and even though I’m a very proud Swansea Valley boy, I’ve got to say, I’m impressed.
Is this the real life?
Nicole Mezzasalma, Senior Consultant at Battenhall, ran a session focused on “AI Meets Social Media: A Match Made in Heaven?”. Her session explored the rise of AI and what this means for all of us as comms/social media professionals. Whether you love it or loathe it AI is everywhere, and it is showing no signs of showing down.
Is this a bad thing? Not necessarily, AI is a tool and the real question of its value comes down to how you use (and communicate that you use) the technology. As these systems continue to evolve, their functionality will rise too, making them key players in the social landscape, so what should you do to adapt to this?
There are three key steps -
Be Transparent, if you’re using the technology, don’t be scared to say that you are (it’s got immense value if you know how to use it correctly)
Have an AI Policy, are some areas of AI allowed in your work and others not so much? State that in your policy to avoid confusion and people misusing the technology
Keep Up to Date, AI as a technology is evolving at an unprecedented pace if you don’t keep up with the developments, you’ll start to fall behind your competitors who are in the loop
Roll on 2025’s SMCC
I had so much fun at this year’s SMCC, getting to meet, connect and learn from amazing creators from all over Wales - from BBC Wales and S4C to the Welsh Government, the Six Nations to Hearst Magazine, it was a networking masterclass.
I cannot wait to see what 2025’s SMCC has in store. I’d love to speak at an event like this in the future, how cool would that be?! For the time being though, let’s celebrate the Welsh communications community for being the welcoming, supportive and exciting environment that it is to be a part of.