The San Juan County Economic Development Council will host an Orcas workshop on social media, social influence marketing and search engine optimization on Tuesday, June 7.

“Social media is revolutionizing the way we use the Internet, and its low- or no-cost tools can be used by small businesses to achieve remarkable results,” says instructor Victoria Compton, director of the council.

The course will start out with a basic overview of social media and social influence marketing (SIM): definitions, best practices, and most effective platforms. Then it will cover tutorials on setting up a Facebook fan page, a Twitter account and tracking SIM campaigns using tools like Google Analytics.

Additionally, the class will look at SEO – search engine optimization – with an eye toward results in both regional and global search engines and markets. The participants will leave the workshop with all the tools they need to create a robust marketing program through social media.

Compton has worked for over 20 years in marketing and advertising. She founded At Home Magazine and published the first three official Visitors’ Guides to the San Juans in collaboration with the SJI Visitors’ Bureau. She later worked for five years as a marketing consultant in Manhattan and the NY metro area, with a particular focus on helping small- to mid-sized companies get the word out about their products and services with very small marketing budgets.

The San Juan County Economic Development Council is the county’s state- and municipality-funded agency working solely to improve business conditions in the San Juan Islands. Its Business Education Series was created in response to concerns from local business owners and the overall increased demand from new businesses. This series will present a variety of topics designed both for those opening new businesses and for those wanting to take their businesses to the next level. San Juan County and the Port of Friday Harbor have helped to fund the series.

The social media class will be held at the Eastsound fire hall from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with a short break for lunch. Cost is $60. A laptop, advance registration and payment are required. Class size is limited, so please reserve your space early. For more information: 360-378-2906 or info@sanjuansedc.org.