Ever wonder who’s behind the witty captions, inspiring photos and engaging videos on social media?
For Irving ISD, it’s AndreAnna Tate.
Tate, a Mississippi native, attended the University of Southern Mississippi where she studied merchandising with aspirations to pursue a career in the fashion industry. As life sometimes does, it took Tate on a different path.
Thanks to her marketing classes in college, along with an internship her senior year, Tate realized she had a calling that she could no longer ignore. She put her dreams of working in the fashion industry on hold and followed the path which led her to marketing. Just two weeks after graduating college in 2017, Tate moved to Texas, beginning her professional career.
Now in her second year at Irving ISD, Tate manages the district’s Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Nextdoor accounts, for a combined total of 66,920 followers.
And it’s no small feat.
“Social media is not an easy job,” says Tate. “It requires a lot of skill and creativity, including content writing and creation, photography, strategic thinking and a constant focus on the brand.”
Thankfully for Tate, no day is the same and she likes it that way. One day she’s driving to campuses covering events and live tweeting on Twitter. The next day, she’s editing a video for Facebook featuring our chef sharing healthy recipes, and the day after that, she’s coordinating marketing photo shoots for Instagram. Not to mention the occasional event planning.
“I love my work,” says Tate.”I’m constantly growing and being challenged. Plus, I love meeting new people and this job is great for that.”
Along with managing the district’s social media, she also posts for her dog’s Instagram account, @dallasthedorkie. Dallas, a dotson and yorkie mix, is an influencer with 548 followers of his own. Tate and Dallas keep the younger audience entertained with fun reels, super chill photos and tips for dogs.
Whether Tate is planning the social media calendar for ‘Dallas the Dorkie’ or Irving ISD, she understands the importance of being extremely intentional. She plans her posts at least two weeks in advance, uses analytics to identify the best strategies for posting, researches her audience and creates content specific to each platform.
After all, social media serves as the online voice of a brand or organization, especially for a large school district like Irving ISD.
