Our adventure with #DIDAYSGIRLPOWER continues : it is the turn of Federica Miceli, a Sicilian in love with the world. In 2015, she founded Social Media Change, a company that deals with strategic management, consulting and training in the field of Social Media Marketing. In the same year, she opened the Igers Siracusa community that deals with promoting the territory through photography and Instagram. Today, he is Regional Manager of Igers Sicily and a member of the Igers Italy social media team.
Tell us a little bit about your journey and how you came to the world of social media
It has not been a linear path, actually I never imagined I would be doing this job today. I studied Foreign Languages and Cultures because I was curious about the world, then instead I diverted to the world of tourism, specializing at Ca' Foscari University in Venice and working in the hôtellerie for several years, both in Italy and abroad. My big break was the Syracuse Tourism Consortium, where I was in charge of territorial marketing for my city. There I began to intuit the boundless world of possibilities that Social offered, and I didn't want to stop at classic office work. I wanted to discover more, challenge myself and not settle. I resigned and started freelancing, a difficult choice and an uphill path, but one I would take a thousand more times.
In 2015, you opened the Igers Syracuse community that focuses on promoting the area. Today you are the regional manager of Instagramers Sicilia, an account of more than 60,000 followers. What strategies do you use to grow the community?
When I founded Instagramers Syracuse, I did not fully realize the media power that communication of this kind could offer. I knew that promoting the area with an approach that starts from the bottom and focuses on those who live the place as the first ambassadors was a winning idea. The community gave me so much enthusiasm and believed in me right from the start, I just put my skills to work and seasoned them with a healthy desire to have fun and do good for my land. In a world where everything is findable and visible online, we carry the promotion of the land offline, we organize events where nicknames become names and profile photos become smiling faces. The key to growth has been this, as well as a team of people located in the region who, together with me, are committed on a daily basis to passionately pursue the project in the local reality project. Being an instagramer and telling the story of the area with ever new eyes is not a purpose, ours is a way of life!
What means (cell phone or camera) and programs do you use to arrive at the final photo?
In my work I love to plan and have everything under control, with my profile I have the luxury of improvisation. While I use photos taken with my SLR, I often find myself living in a moment that I want to capture and share instantly. I am still an Instagram romantic and believe that spontaneity and authenticity are often winning values. As a Social Media Manager, I use Onlypult for scheduling posts because it is obvious that at the corporate level it is essential to follow a strategic editorial calendar to achieve business goals.
On your Linkedin profile you write "I consider Social tools as facilitators of offline human relationships," what do you mean?
We often forget that "Social Network" means "Social Networks." At the center are people, always. These are platforms born with and for users, although the potential for businesses is enormous. Behind smartphones are faces, names, needs, emotions and not simply numbers. Success is decreed by the quality of the relationships established. Numbers are empty until we give them meaning.
5 tips you want to give to people who want to get started on Instagram and social media
The prerequisite is to have something to tell, a message to spread, a personality to communicate. Today being an influencer is a coveted profession that is often trivially considered "sponsoring products that companies give away." It misses the point that true influencers are people considered influential by those who follow them, people who over time have cultivated a community that appreciates them for who they are and the example they spread. Avoiding emulation, copy-paste, and fads at any cost are rules that apply as much to personal profiles as they do to businesses. And this brings me straight to my second point: don't obsess over numbers. Followers, likes, views are vanity metrics if they don't correspond to actual engagement and interest of people.Focus on long-term relationships, consider that online you carry everything you are offline, don't think only about selling and much less believe that Instagram is the ultimate goal of your strategy. This is one channel, but promotion is made up of several nodes (not just online) that must be consistent and coordinated with each other for there to be results.
What do you think about the gender gap within the industry you work in?
First, I think we need to talk about it to break down so many of the stereotypes that society is still filled with. And the problem is not only for women who enter the world of technology and often see themselves inundated with prejudice if they try to emerge in this ever-growing field, it is society itself that is a victim of this as it tends not to take advantage of such enormous potential. We women, for our part, should take more courage and throw ourselves more easily into new challenges and not wait until we think we are perfect to do so.
Do you think it is necessary to carry out activities to involve more women within it? If yes how ? Do you have any ideas that you think could be supported by the Digital Innovation Days Italy community?
Recently, I have been participating in many events that have the goal of women's digital inclusion, networking, meeting, exchange, and education. This makes me excited because (let's break down another stereotype) we women are collaborative, we know how to team up, and we know how to be allies in big battles. Continuing to organize local and national events of this kind to shine a spotlight on female professionals who succeed or want to succeed in fields traditionally considered "male" is the infrastructure needed to put an end to gender and technology stereotypes.
Follow Federica on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin and on her beautiful website.
Elisa Baldo
