By: Nurul Athira Mohd Affandi and Zainida Nor Izzati Mohd Zainuri
SHAH ALAM, Sept 25 – A total of 150 Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) students are trained to be international influencers in the International Youth Influencer Convention (IYIC), a seminar which was held online.
The seminar aimed to train and guide 500 youths to become influencers and Key Opinion Leaders (KOL) in the international community.
Chapter Alumni YOSH UPM Representative, Nur Suiadah Shamsudin, said the seminar was also aimed to expose the youths to the power of virality on social media platforms and to guide the youths to be brave to deliver positive and motivating messages through the ‘Be The Next Key Opinion Leader (KOL)’ slot.
MyFundAction representative, Nur Hafezzah Hussin, hoped the effort would send a positive message which could be spread widely around the world by harnessing the viral power of social media.
"If the youths are not serious about being influencers who invite to goodness, society will be influenced by the influencers who bring bad influences in terms of thinking, understanding and actions," she said.
MyFundAction also featured great online speakers and facilitators, including MyFundAction content creator, Nur Eizzaty Hazirah; MyFundAction Sabah media, Salwa Naidin; and Leds Studio marketing officer, Aiman Abdullah, to share their knowledge and experience with participants.
MyFundAction Founder and Principal Adviser and also MyFundAction Chief Executive Officer, Tuan Muhammad Afiq Mohmad Nazari, as well as the Chief Marketing Officer, Nur Hafezzah Hussin, also provided the vision and sharing.
The YOSH voluntary facilitators were not shy in sharing with their peers on the experience of being an influencer on various social media platforms such as Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.
Through the seminar, the participants were reminded to prioritise the production of quality content rather than the pursuit of popularity to create a positive impact in the community.
A Doctor of Medicine student from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, UPM, Nurul Amira Harun, said she hoped youth influencers would be aware of the purpose of displaying content on social media platforms.
"They need to be aware that the priority of displaying content which is prudent and educating the public is not to gain popularity but to share benefits and advantages in various aspects," she said.
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) medical student, Nurin Darwisyah Mohd Faizal, hoped that seminars as such will be held again to increase knowledge in content production and provide awareness on the impact of the videos that went viral.
“I am so happy to be able to help my team members in content creation, and some of them have even managed to produce videos and get higher viewership than before,” she said.
The seminar involved participants from various countries, including Malaysia, Indonesia and West Asia.
The participants were students from local and foreign universities, including UPM, Universiti Malaya (UM), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), International Islamic University Malaysia (UIAM), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS), Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP), Al-Azhar University (Egypt), Telkom University (Indonesia) and Bandung Institute of Technology (Indonesia). - UPM
