The projects’ main objective was to use the existing digital and personal skills of NEETs to inspire, motivate and re-integrate them with innovative training-tools, services and methods to develop their skills as Social Media Managers and connect them to SMEs who need their services. By following this win-win strategy, these vulnerable youth found a future career while becoming positive members of society, and SMEs were able to request and use online content for the digital and financial improvement of the organisation. The main objective was achieved through some specific objectives: 1. Connecting and educating NEETs through a motivational training programme of Social Media 2. upskilling social workers in becoming Social Media Trainers through 3. designing - The Follow-us Platform - where NEETS are contacted by SMEs to create social media content and will, therefore, enable them to gain experience and build their own portfolio, 4. providing SMEs with a tool that functions as a Social Media department, that is often limited or even non-existent. The project was also a good opportunity to foster cooperation within regions as it implemented joint initiatives in regions of Europe that are lagging behind.
2020 was the year when everything changed. It paused many people’s progress on family and career goals and it forced countless classes, trainings, and even holiday gatherings, either onto Zoom or out of existence. Many job positions that require face-to-face contact were lost or just disappeared. This difficult situation for young people has resulted in a high and increasing rate of NEETs in Europe (17,1% Eurostat 2020) as the market seems to not being offering the right positions for this target group. It also has been seen that EU SMEs are not digitalized and therefore cannot make effective use of what digital tools can provide them. C4E saw this situation as an opportunity for young Europeans, SMEs and training institutions to impact on the digital transition. The Needs Analysis conducted reaffirmed Social Media as a tool to tackle NEETs problems providing participants with valuable opportunities for both social and digital inclusion. and help SMEs, as they give the opportunity to achieve visibility, reduce costs, and increase sales while achieving the digital transition.