David Lingholm, the social media team lead for Consumer’s Energy, will address “The Myth of the Social Media Guru: Seven Things All Social Media Mangers Want You to Know” on Wednesday, Dec. 1, at Muskegon Community College.

The talk, which is free and open to the public, is part of the MCC President’s Speakers Series: Lessons in Leadership. The lecture takes place from 11 a.m. to noon in Stevenson Center Room 1300 on the main campus and will also be available online via Zoom. To participate, click on the following link: https://muskegoncc-edu.zoom.us/j/96515818130?pwd=Q0Y5RzUvUjhacWVIK210U3hLZ09wQT09 Webinar ID: 965 1581 8130 Passcode: 386281. To join by phone, dial (646) 558-8656.

The 2020-21 lecture series features individuals selected by MCC President Dale K. Nesbary for their impact on the growth of his professional career. Dr. Nesbary is retiring next summer after 44 years in higher education, research, and public policy work, including 13 years as the college president.

“The Lessons in Leadership series is intended ​to allow colleagues from education, the public sector, business, and the community to share their ideas on the state of higher education, offering solutions to issues that we face daily,” explained Nesbary, who as a political science professor taught Lingholm at Oakland University.

“Social media guru. That sounds like a compliment, right?” asks Lingholm. “It is. Kind of. Social media managers communicate on a dynamic medium with ambiguous expectations, lean budgets, and reputational risk at the forefront of our minds. We debate the proper pronunciation of GIF. We think in 240-character chunks. Our phones are an extension of our hands.”

“Being successful using social media is both art and science, so it can seem like we are speaking an entirely different language. The best ones use that language in a way that make them seem enlightened about using social media. That does not make us all-knowing, however. In fact, the platforms we use and their algorithms change so frequently, solid advice from a month ago is often out-of-date. New social media channels crop up faster than weeds in a freshly planted garden. Pop culture changes quickly and what your audience reacted fairly to last week will get you slammed this week. Which is why we all grimace when we’re called a guru.”

Lingholm promises those “willing to listen to a non-guru with over a decade of experience building social media teams from scratch” will learn why social media managers:

• Beam at well written blog posts
• Cringe when told an intern can run a campaign
• Binge-watch almost anything
• Gag when asked to make something go viral
• Are flocking to data analytics classes
• And much, much more.

For more information on the lecture series, contact Kristin Tank, dean of marketing and communications at MCC, at kristin.tank@muskegoncc.edu.