Life & Work with Kelly Savage of Columbus

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kelly Savage.

Hi Kelly, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve always loved writing, ever since I was a little girl. I had dreams of living my own “Almost Famous” live telling stories about the music industry. But as print journalism and the music world both began to shift significantly, social media made its way into my life.

It started in my first real job after college working at a small music magazine – we were on MySpace, which is one way to really date myself – and I later launched our Facebook and Twitter accounts. It was just one of my many responsibilities, and it wasn’t until five years later when I was hired on at an agency that social media became my exclusive job.

It was then that I really dove head first into honing my skills in the space, including growing along with the changing platforms as advertising began to take over and channels like Vine and Snapchat came to play. My clients were almost exclusively in the health care industry, and while at first I thought it might be boring, I ended up falling in love with finding a way to make social media useful and helpful while also still flexing those creative muscles. At the time, I had no idea how important social media would later become in the health care industry amidst a global pandemic and rampant misinformation.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has definitely not always been a smooth road. I’ve had bosses who didn’t care, about social media, didn’t see the value, didn’t think it was worth investing in, and bosses who have allowed me to dig in and maximize the potential. It’s always changing, and for a long time, there was a lot of misunderstanding about what it could truly accomplish. While some of that still exists today, I think so many of the incredible social media managers out there have really paved the way for the field to be successful.

Early on in my career, social media was often an after thought, not thought about as a piece of broader marketing plans, leading to uninspired creative or forcing particular messaging into a format where it just didn’t fit.

It’s also often meant working in a silo, on a lean team, and really having to go above and beyond to prove a new idea that might feel “risky” is worth doing. But every time I’ve had to fight for something, it’s ended up being the right decision – whether because it was successful, or because we learned something from it not working out the way we intended.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m currently the Director of Social Media at Ohio State’s Medical Center and have spent the past 12 years in health care social media specifically. I focus on creating strategy to help increase patient volumes while also educating the public about evidence-based health topics in a world where misinformation is becoming more common every day.

I also dedicate a lot of my time to relationship building. In health care social media, we rely so much on the experts to help us explain the right topics and share stories about the medical breakthroughs that are happening every day. I’m really proud of the way I’ve been able to give my team visibility within the system, as well as educating and empowering our experts to feel comfortable in this space. It’s so rewarding when someone who was originally hesitant about being active on social media gives it a shot and finds success.

We’ve also developed strong partnerships with our colleagues in legal and compliance, which has been hugely beneficial and allows us to make the best content decisions while staying in the appropriate guardrails in such a highly regulated industry.

Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Social media is a wild place – it’s always changing, but for me, that’s the fun of it. No day is ever the same. If you’re just starting out, it’s all about learning by doing. Classes can teach the basics, but until you’ve had a chance to test content, learn about the algorithm and develop a true strategy by channel, you’re really just scratching the surface.

These days, social media has become more of a pay to play model than ever before. I’d recommend finding certifications online – many are free! – to get educated on paid social media in particular. This space only continues to grow and there are fewer people with the real expertise necessary there.

Also, find newsletters that can keep you updated on the platform changes so you can always make sure you’re making recommendations with the latest information in mind.

Contact Info:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellysavage52/