Shakira: Her hips don’t lie, and neither does her Facebook page

For this post, I was asked to pick someone on social media whose presence I admire. I have selected someone who is perhaps not a typical choice for an MBA student, one of the most famous (and one of my personal favorite) performers, Shakira. Now, if you can get over the overly-cheesy title of this entry, you will see through to the main reason I admire Shakira’s profile, because of its authenticity. I think Shakira does a great job crafting an authentic, likable tone, while also speaking to a variety of audiences and accomplishing multiple goals. One thing I struggle with on social media is balancing my desire to be private with constructing a genuine image of myself. As someone who is very famous and is constantly in the limelight, Shakira really strikes this balance well.

1. Shakira seems to understand that on Facebook, she cannot and should not attempt to entirely separate her professional and personal lives. And in fact, she does a good job intertwining them. She shows herself as a dedicated mother, and clearly links that dedication with her commitment to child development and education.

2. On a related note, Shakira positions herself as a spokesperson for social issues related to children. She is committed to child development and education and has been involved in several campaigns on those topics. She has even developed her own parenting app, which she promotes on her page. Her consistent commitment to these issues and to her own child makes this involvement appear genuine to anyone viewing her page. If she is trying to position herself as a thought leader on social issues related to children, her Facebook page is helping her achieve this goal.

3. Of course, at the end of the day, Shakira is a musician trying to promote her music. She features new songs and videos on her Facebook page and also reminds her fans of some older fan favorites. What I like about her page is that while she is clearly promoting her music to fans, the tone is not overly “in your face.” She strikes the right balance between business goals with charitable goals, concert photos with funny and endearing photos with her family.

4. Finally, Shakira knows that anyone can view her Facebook page, and she appropriately targets multiple audiences. She features ads for her new song in Zootopia, to cater to mothers who perhaps admire her for her charitable pursuits, as well as younger, more innocent fans. She also shares sexier photos like the one above to cater to her adult fans, many of whom admire her not only for her music but for her beauty and style.