Social Celebrities - Nicole Bassit

The first Oman's Social Celebrity I’m going to feature is Nicole Bassit. I've know Nicole for many years; she is hard working, hands-on and a passionate marketing professional. Here is what Nicole shared with us:

Having been born and brought up in Oman, I enjoy the simplicity and harmony that Oman has to offer. I am originally Syrian and started my career in banking. From there onwards, I moved to different industries such as consultancy, education and training until I stumbled across hospitality.

Working as the Marketing Communications Manager at Grand Hyatt Muscat, one of the Sultanate's most iconic hotels has been quite exciting. At times I feel like I have the perfect job, simply because I love what I do and because it allows me to do what I love. Social media has been an integral part of my job and as a hotel, we have taken onboard the importance of social media from the beginning.

Current place of work?

Grand Hyatt Muscat.

How did your passion for social media start?

It was rather a passion to keep up to date with technology. I love learning new things and social media was no exception. It's just raw, personal and real. It sort of gives you an    adrenaline rush when you share exciting information and photos...

Have you ever thought it could become your ‘real’ job?

No not really. Only in the past few years did I figure it was inevitable to become structured into a marketing professionals job description.

What’s your favourite platform?

I personally love Twitter. It's just a great platform to go to for information, news, travel and fashion. As for our particular business, Facebook has been very dominant on the social scene. However Twitter, Instagram and Google+ are also becoming as important for businesses.

What’s the biggest challenge you had to face?

I would say not realising how invasive it can sometimes be. I tend to live a private and quiet life despite my hectic job and working hours. For a business, social media has led to both positive outcomes such as enabling you to communicate directly with your clients while sometimes it has also lead to catastrophes when negative information spirals out of control creating severe backlash.

And the biggest satisfaction?

It definitely has to be the ability to reach people quicker and to get a much faster reaction. Twitter is great because it's not mainly used as a platform to brag about oneself but for useful information. I also love the fact that you are directly able to start a conversation with anyone and to share your own thoughts on various trending topics.

How many hours a day do you spend on social media?

Around 10-12 hours.

Who’s the person you read/follow the most online?

I follow and read about lots of different things. However to begin with it's gotta be our lovely local bloggers, BBC Travel and World News, Oprah (such inspiring tweets) Elle and Vogue magazine. Last but not least, Perez Hilton to get the scoop on fashion and Hollywood.

If you were not into social media, what would you be doing?

Probably a journalist.

Well done Nicole, keep up the good work! 

If you think you’re a social celebrity or you know anyone who is let me know by leaving a comment or dropping me a mail. Stay tuned for more celebrities!