As part of your job in nearly any career, you will need to be able to communicate through writing. You may be asked to create original written material that addresses a particular audience. To do this, you will need to organize your communication to ensure effective delivery of your message. In today’s world, one common delivery method is social media. As many organizations move their internal communication online, sites like Yammer, Slack, and Microsoft Teams blend social media and professional communication. Whether or not you use social media, its content and influence are likely a part of your life in some way. Blogging is another writing form used not only for personal expression, but also for marketing, promoting, creating online communities, and engaging audiences, all of which are goals of social media. For this assessment, you will draft a social media or blog post to demonstrate your ability to construct an original piece of written work.

Preparation

Recall 1 example of an effective social media post from a social media site or platform or from a blog site you have read and consider these questions as you prepare for this assessment: 

• Who is the intended audience for that social media post or blog post?
• What makes that social media post or blog post effective? What might a social media post or blog post look or sound like if it were crafted to persuade an audience?

Before you begin this assessment, review the following resources to learn more about writing and formatting social media and blog posts:

• University Library articles and video
• “A Librarian's Journey in Blogging”
• “Twitter's Outrage Machine Should be Stopped. But Justine Sacco is the Wrong Poster Child”
• Webinar: "Using Social Media to Get a Job."
• “TEDTalks: Megan Phelps-Roper—I Grew Up in The Westboro Baptist Church. Here's Why I Left”
• Genre Description Chart

Assessment Deliverable

Using the resources provided, draft a social media or blog post to apply your written communication skills and demonstrate your ability to construct an original piece of written work. This assessment allows you to consider and use the elements of rhetorical situation that contribute to a thoughtful and useful social media or blog post. If you already use social media, consider how you would create a post on a platform you use. If you don’t currently use social media, imagine how you might create a post. 

Note: You are not required to actually post your finished assessment to any social media platforms. 

Complete the Online Written Communication and Reflection document.

Submit your assessment.