We’re spending the whole month of October celebrating the Social Pro. All month long, we’ll share tips, stories and inspiration just for you.
We’re kicking it off with some shout-outs for the social media pros: the copywriters, content creators, community managers, data analysts and digital marketing gurus who make magic happen – amplifying a brand’s message, inspiring followers and building engaged communities.
Check out their personal profiles and the accounts they manage (or create content for). Give them a follow and show them some love. These are the Social Pros to watch in 2021!
And keep in mind, these are just a few of the pros we want to highlight. Who should we add to this list? Shout them out @psforbrands!
Astasia Williams – @WashingtonNFL
Considered a must-follow by NFL photographer Logan Bowles, Astasia Williams shares witty tweets and punchy reactions on her own Twitter while appealing to 1.2 million followers on the Washington Football Team’s account. I love the mix of team updates, throwback moments and game day highlights. Throw in a 🔥 promo video like this one every now and then and you’ve got me sold!
It's officially GAMEDAY 🔥 pic.twitter.com/oRjeGwKCRO
— Washington Football Team (@WashingtonNFL) September 20, 2020
Becky Kaminsky – @billboard
The music industry is full of exciting trends and historic moments – lots of fun fodder for social content. If you’re a music nerd like me who loves today’s hits, music news and the Billboard Hot 100, I recommend giving Billboard a follow. Check out the steady stream of industry highlights Becky and her team get to curate and share every day. Jealous! ✋
Blaize Stewart – @ACHEConnect
Word on the street is that Blaize has a great mind for social strategy (an awesome shout-out from the folks in our Slack community!) On the official Twitter account for the American College of Healthcare Executives, there are some really great resources for staying healthy and informed, through articles, lists, webinars, podcasts and more.
Check out the September selections for our “What’s On Your Bookshelf?” series today. This month covers the essential traits of successful #healthcare #leaders, strategies for elevating and sustaining service excellence, and insights on a new #medical staff operating model.
— ACHE (@ACHEConnect) September 30, 2020
Brooke McDonough – @ilcp_photographers
Our friend Brooke has a fun and admirable job at The International League of Conservation Photographers. Working on a small but mighty team, she connects with iLCP Fellows – some of the best photographers in the world and shares their photos to help aid in their mission to protect the world’s most special places, species and cultures. Give them a follow!
Carina Petrillo – MTV
The MTV Twitter account is a pop culture paradise. It’s a one-stop shop for celebrity memes, reaction gifs, music and TV news, and relatable social commentary that keeps the fans and followers coming back for more. Carina does a fantastic job crafting a brand voice that embodies the pop culture fanatic in all of us.
Another busy day of thinking about impossible scenarios where I meet celebrities who don't know I exist!
— MTV (@MTV) September 30, 2020
Elaine Bussjaeger – @americanredcross
This Instagram account is definitely worth a follow. Elaine and her team do a great job creating inspiring, heartwarming and sometimes heartbreaking content. Cheers to Elaine for managing a robust content calendar that tells the story of this nonprofit organization. Believe it or not, you’ll want to check out their TikTok account, too. Shout-out to the #SocialPro behind these TikTok videos!
Emerald Chan – @freshdirect
Everyone loves a cooking show! Not only does Emerald make her own fun cooking tutorials on FreshDirect’s IGTV channel, but she styles and photographs beautiful, mouth-watering meals for the brand’s social channels. Kudos to this chef, food stylist, recipe developer and social media star!
Jess Smith – @NYRangers
A great social media manager knows how to start a conversation. Jess Smith is a leader in #smsports, challenging other social media managers to step up their game and sharing her own learnings and insights along the way.
Okay, social & content friends.
What's your biggest social hot take that will cause a stir with other social media pros?
Feel like this is a fun one to sound off on.
— Jess Smith (@WarJessEagle) October 1, 2020
Julian Valentin – @Rockies
Julian is a trailblazer when it comes to a lightning-fast creative process and outside the box ideas. Rather than sharing a play-by-play of the Rockies’ time on the field, Julian’s team often shares ‘color commentary’ – the authentic, behind the scenes moments that his team is known for producing.
11 weeks ago we began the 2020 season, prepared for an anomalous campaign and its many challenges.
60 games. New rules. Empty stadiums. Strict protocols. Content restrictions.
Baseball—and its daily operations—had changed. 🧵 pic.twitter.com/seBKfnAm3n
— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) September 27, 2020
And hey… speaking of the #SocialPro, it looks like Julian’s two-year-old daughter is next in line.
My two-year-old daughter just…
1. Stole my phone
2. Unlocked it somehow
3. Logged into my Twitter account
4. Went to @billboard
5. Saved the @ladygaga header photo
6. Texted it to my mother-in-law twice pic.twitter.com/3wX87v4B6A— Julian Valentin (@JulianValentin) October 2, 2020
Juliana Bauerle – @NatlAquarium
Are you a National Geographic fan? How about Planet Earth? I am too. If you love looking at animal photos and learning about the environment, you’ll be psyched to hear about Juliana’s role as a #SocialPro. Her job on the National Aquarium’s social team includes sharing facts and photos of beautiful wildlife and amplifying their mission to “inspire conservation of the world’s aquatic treasures.” Yes, please.
This past weekend we celebrated Urban National Wildlife Refuge Day with a socially distanced BioBlitz at Masonville Cove! A total of 157 observations of 85 unique species were made by Aquarium staff members and volunteers. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/ajaNZa5t8z
— National Aquarium (@NatlAquarium) October 1, 2020
Kaylynn Knuth – @hudl
I really love this tweet from Kaylynn, outlining the topics she’s most passionate about. 👇
3 of my most passionate topics to talk about:
• sports
• social media
• mental healthIt’s an extremely tough time to be involved in any (or all) of those things right now.
My DMs are always open.
Check on your friends, friends!— kaylynn knuth (@kaylynnknuth) August 12, 2020
Working as a social media manager in the world of college sports – at a time when both college and sports are in a state of uncertainty – can take a toll on your mental health. I appreciate the openness and honesty here. And when you need an escape or an exciting moment to make your day, Kaylynn delivers some awesome replays and highlight reels on @hudl’s Twitter account. Check it out!
Won't. Be. Denied. 😤
Blake Beachnau | DeWitt HS, MI pic.twitter.com/ZdDnOotCUG
— Hudl (@Hudl) October 1, 2020
Kelsey Doherty – @RedSox
As they close out their 2020 season, Kelsey and the creative team at the Red Sox have been sharing some quality content on Twitter. You won’t find a shortage of highlight reels, final game day photos and moments of reflection.
We're closing out the 2020 season later today, but not without a look back at some of the best plays of the last month.
Top Plays x @NationalPro pic.twitter.com/h1THyLmRpE
— Red Sox (@RedSox) September 27, 2020
No matter the time of year, Kelsey is known for working with the photo team to share stunning imagery of the players, fans and those small, intimate moments that only her team can deliver – and fast!
We love following #NBATwitter and the Mavericks are a team to watch. Lizelle fills their social feeds with a healthy mix of throwback content, creative graphics, team photos and more. Who can resist this childhood photo of Tim Hardaway Jr. to help ring in the Halloween season?
When it’s finally October & you’ve got that 🔥 costume idea ready. #TBT pic.twitter.com/kcIh2eHxkD
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) October 1, 2020
Maria Ramsaier – @ATLUTD
The Atlanta United FC community is a passionate bunch, and you can tell Social Media Coordinator Maria Ramsaier is just as passionate about soccer as she is about the organization’s inspiring initiative to #KickChildhoodCancer.
YES!!!!! 👏👏👏👏 #KickChildhoodCancer https://t.co/sV9vlyq61H
— Maria Ramsaier (@MariaRamsaier) September 25, 2020
Giving followers an inside look at the team’s game day highlights is one thing, but producing heartwarming content that ties fans to something larger is extra special. Cheers, Maria!
Our Conquer kids getting a special call from @JosefMartinez17 🌟 pic.twitter.com/JyBUOIBkie
— Atlanta United FC (@ATLUTD) September 30, 2020
Meg Lewis – @GIPHY
GIFs! Need I say more? In recent years, GIFs have exploded in popularity. The best part is, GIFs can be used to convey an immeasurable number of reactions, emotions and messages. Meg holds down the fort on the GIPHY Twitter, where there are endless opportunities to share and retweet our favorite looping memes.
on repeat today 🎶
p.s. @EarthWindFire has a brand new official GIPHY channel! ➡️ https://t.co/kD0uV1BKG4 pic.twitter.com/BRh2QoJ2Vc
— GIPHY (@GIPHY) September 21, 2020
Megan Julian – @chargers
Megan crushes it with her emoji game and punchy copy over on the Chargers Twitter. You can say the positive energy she adds to the account is electric. I mean, look at this. Who doesn’t love a good Wallpaper Wednesday – with the team pup, too!
we could all use more Bolt in our lives 😍#WallpaperWednesday pic.twitter.com/iOUlKrrKLm
— Los Angeles Chargers (@Chargers) September 30, 2020
Nik Conklin – @betr
Betr’s mission says it all: “Give people experiences that make them think, celebrate, embody and dream of a more positive world around them.”
Being Head of Content at a company like this has to be an uplifting experience. And I love the inspiring content Nik is whipping up on Betr’s Twitter account. Even a simple message like this one goes a long way.
We're all rough drafts of the people we're becoming.
— betr (@Betr) October 1, 2020
Polly Irungu – @BlkWomenPhoto
Polly started building the Black Women Photographers collective back in July. In just a few short months, her mission and her message are being spread around the country (even featured by NASDAQ in Times Square!) and her social channels are glowing with support from the photo community and big brands like Nikon.
I’m truly speechless. I really can’t believe I’m typing this right now. My work is in Times Square. My voice is being amplified by NASDAQ. My work is showcasing Black women joy. 🖤 #AmplifyingBlackVoices https://t.co/AYkLtjkhm9
— Polly Irungu (@pollyirungu) August 21, 2020
Happening today: @pollyirungu, photographer and founder of Black Women Photographers, joins #NikonAmbassador @ToddOwyoung on NikonUSA's Instagram LIVE!
Watch at 3pm EDT to hear all about @BlkWomenPhoto and what's next for this global collective: https://t.co/RKyANKsNrD pic.twitter.com/KEAnpSS9ip
— NikonUSA (@NikonUSA) September 23, 2020
Sally Cohen – @specialolympics
Every day, Sally shares a message of inclusivity across the Special Olympics’ social media channels. The stories told and the memories shared through photos and videos bring a warmth to your newsfeed. I can not commend Sally and the team at Special Olympics enough for empowering and uplifting so many people with their ‘global inclusion movement.’
Our movement is made up of the experiences of our athletes. The moments where they shine, where they are leaders, where they can be themselves with their friends & free to learn from their coaches or mentors.
See some moments that have changed us ➡️ https://t.co/JbmefrgkXG pic.twitter.com/Q2bMfay0NG
— Special Olympics (@SpecialOlympics) September 30, 2020
Stuart Drew – @miamidolphins, @hardrockstadium & @miamiopen
A triple threat! Managing the accounts of three separate brands or organizations is not an easy feat. Enter Stu Drew, who shares innovative visual content for the Dolphins, event updates and highlight reels for Hard Rock Stadium, and special moments of the players and fans on the Miami Open account too. She’s a true #SocialPro.
Current mood. #FinsUp pic.twitter.com/sjy4oYzfCN
— Stuart Drew (@studrew1) September 24, 2020
Zach Seidel – @UMBCAthletics
Remember when the 16th seed UMBC upset the #1 seed UVA in March Madness a couple years ago? Or maybe you remember the viral tweets happening throughout. Zach was the man behind the account when the Twitterverse was focused on it… and boy, did he deliver.
PUT SOME RESPECK ON IT! WE HAVE DEFEATED NO.1 OVERALL SEED VIRGINIA 74-54
— UMBC Athletics (@UMBCAthletics) March 17, 2018
I want to network with you, too! I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to share my own social media profiles and pat myself on the back a bit. Let’s connect: Jeremy Berkowitz – @photoshelter / @psforbrands.
Now it’s your turn. Who did we miss? Who are the social media wizards making an impact with creative campaigns, punchy copy and meme-able moments? Tweet us at @psforbrands with your shout-outs or leave a comment below.
Here’s to the social media pros! 🍻
Up Next: Head over to our Social Pro hub!
4 comments
absolutely amazing article! I must say that your blog is really very interesting and fun to read. thanks for sharing it with us.
Very informative and well-described post Jeremy.This information is very important for newbies like me. Keep writing!
Nice list of social pros Jeremy, there are quite a few ideas to draw from here and the honey and apple galette looks delicious too 🙂