Student Q&A: Teigan Ngahu-Ngahu

Not knowing what study direction to take, an encouraging push from her boss lead Teigan Ngahu-Ngahu to study the Social Media Marketing with Upskilled.

She currently works as a Personal Assistant at accounting firm, Goodridge Advisory  but since completing her qualification, she's had the opportunity to work with the company's social media channels from the ground up, identifying trends when it comes to posting engaging content that resonate well with their clients.

In this Q&A, Teigan shares the skills and knowledge she's developed from completing the course, the support she has received from her trainer and how she managed to balance online study with her full-time work schedule.

Why did you decide to study Social Media Marketing?

I was encouraged by my boss to continue studying after I graduated year 12 in 2017. He was the one that suggested marketing as it would be beneficial for our small accounting firm.

Since I had no expectations of what I wanted to do, it meant I wasn’t opposed to giving this course a go. I’m so glad I did because I really enjoy social media marketing and the opportunities it has created for me personally and for the business. To learn and have this qualification going into the future of technology and the evolving depiction of “An Accountant” couldn’t come at a better time.

You currently work as a Personal Assistant at Goodridge Advisory. Could you explain more about your role and how this qualification has helped you?

I am the personal assistant to the managing director of Goodridge Advisory. I first started as the client services administrator and have worked my way up. I work closely with my boss in most areas, except for managerial roles. 

Marketing has become an area of responsibility for me and I've been lucky enough to start from scratch and make it into my own little project in the company. Over the past 12-18 months, we've really tried hard to implement social media marketing tools specific for accountants, which has assisted us further. 

What skills and knowledge did you develop from the course? 

I learnt how to use social media to its advantage, tracking results accordingly, implementing different types of campaigns to see what works best for a particular target market and much more. I used the information from the course and was able to see what content our clients prefer based on their engagement rates. 

The content from the course was very interesting and exciting to learn. When it came to the IT-focused subjects, I was able to improve my understanding of the course. I would be very interested to see what other courses Upskilled has that's related to marketing. 

Do you think studying online helped you balance your work and personal commitments?

As I work full-time, I found it extremely helpful and beneficial studying 100% online. I spent a couple nights a week and most weekends completing the assessments. My boss and I had an initial conversation to make sure I participated in an online course, so I wasn’t out of the office to attend classes. 

The online portal where I did all my learning was very user-friendly and available on all devices, which I really thought was impressive as sometimes I only had my phone but I could still watch videos for a particular subject, and not feel like I was falling behind on my schedule. 

How did your trainer support you throughout the course?

My trainer Christine O'Brien was great. She was so friendly and always responded to me in a timely manner. She made my experience in the course enjoyable. 

If I needed extra help, she would organise a call and we would discuss where I needed the help. I didn’t have to wait very long to see the outcome of my assessments whether I was marked as Competent or Not Yet Competent. 

If I needed to revisit some areas of my assessments, her comments were clear and very valuable. At the start of each month, I would receive a courtesy call to see how I was tracking with a new subject, which was appreciated. 

What makes social media marketing an exciting industry?

I work for a small accounting firm, so social media is now starting to become a platform for us to market to our clients. I noticed from what I learnt in the course, it created many opportunities that I was able to implement. The scenarios addressed on the assessments needed me to use an organisation, which made it easier for me as I was able to use Goodridge Advisory instead of having to make up a fake company to report on. 

It’s exciting to promote accounting via social media and leave behind the stereotype of an accountant who is dressed in a suit with a briefcase surrounded by mountains of paperwork. The evolution of the typical accountant has changed so much and will continue to with the assistance of social media. 

Any further advice you’d like to share for students thinking about studying this course? 

I recommend studying with Upskilled for the simplicity of online learning. This really helped the decision-making process as it was a crucial element that I needed to apply in my learning. There are schemes available to students, which they may be eligible for, including the Smart and Skilled (NSW) government scheme, which I was a part of. 

Nathaline, the student support team leader I dealt with, was really friendly and her monthly calls were great to touch base on how I was tracking with the overall course. The support from both Christine and Nathaline were really appreciated because I felt I was given that extra mile from them.

Explore the exciting industry that is social media marketing

If you're interested in developing skills in social media marketing like Teigan, consider studying the Social Media Marketing diploma with Upskilled. This course covers training in aspects related to social media marketing, content marketing and email marketing.

You will also learn how to interpret market trends and developments and measure the effectiveness of your social media campaigns. To express your interest for the course, give the team at Upskilled a call on 1300 009 924 to learn more.