Social Media Managers : What they do and how do we hire them

Social media has developed to the point that it has become instrumental for recruiters in their pursuit of talented applicants. Therefore social media hiring has started trending as a tool to be used by recruiters to secure skilled candidates. Social media managers are vital in this regard as they are responsible for overseeing the company’s social media engagement and generating brand awareness.  With the increasing power of social media in today's business world, hiring a skilled social media manager can help a company establish and maintain a strong online presence.

Who is a social media manager?

To put it simply, a social media manager is an executive within the company who is responsible for managing a company's social media presence. They are the ones who create and implement a strategy that helps a business connect with its audience, promote its products or services and attract top talent and boost sales and revenue.

Tasks and Responsibilities of a Social Media Manager

1. Establishing your brand identity

Social media executives should have the capability to understand the company's values and objectives and accordingly decide on an appropriate brand image. They are responsible for promoting it and maintaining a positive opinion in the eyes of the public. The company’s brand image is the first look that those outside the company get at the organization’s values, goals, and culture. This first impression has the potential to influence their opinions of the company in a positive or negative way. Therefore social media managers need to ensure that the company leaves a good first impression on the public which increases the chance of them availing the goods and services of the organization.

In the case of securing effective candidates, companies need to ensure that their applicants see that the company has a welcoming work culture or are aware of the recruitment drives that the company is conducting. This drives top talent to your organization and increases the volume of candidates for recruiting.

2. Identifying the appropriate channels for content or engagement

This is the most vital task following the conceptualization of the company’s brand image. There are a multitude of social media platforms, each serving its own unique purpose and possessing its own unique algorithm. When you hire a social media manager, they are tasked with identifying which of these platforms has to be used for meeting the needs of the company. LinkedIn is a professional social media platform, whereas YouTube is a great place to share videos and other compelling media regarding the company, its products or its work culture. Similarly, Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, Instagram, etc. have their own niches and benefits that have to be identified and related to the company by the social media manager.

3. Curating content

An important responsibility of a social media manager is content creation. This includes creating, curating, and scheduling posts across various social media platforms. They should have a strong understanding of the best practices for each platform, and be able to modify or change their approach to match the rules and trends of individual platforms. They should be adept at creating engaging and compelling content that resonates with your target audience. They should also be able to create visually appealing content, such as graphics and videos, to enhance the overall user experience. They should be able to schedule and manage your content calendar to put out content in a timely manner, optimized to the traffic times of the individual social media platforms.

The next stage of this endeavor is planning and managing an entire social media campaign. This requires coordinated planning and execution over multiple social media platforms over a significant period of time. This includes creating ads, targeting specific audiences, and measuring the success of campaigns. Social media managers should be skilled in running social media advertising campaigns and have the knowledge or experience to utilize social media advertising platforms, such as Facebook Ads and Google AdWords to optimize them. Since these campaigns can tend to be expensive, hiring a social media manager who is able to create them in a cost-effective way is a bonus for every recruiter.

4. Analyzing Analytics

Social Media also provides metrics and data that a manager can utilize to further optimize their strategy and assist the company. This can be the traffic count, post engagement per platform, viewer retention, etc. At the same time, social media is also host to a rapid stream of trends and content, which themselves have a set of analytics  The social media manager is tasked with acquiring and analyzing this data and providing the organization with a set of objectives or practices that it can follow to boost its social media presence. This data is also important for measuring the success of the campaigns and content that they have generated. Therefore following any of these, the social media manager has to present the company with the success of their work and their plans for improving their approach going forward..

5. Monitoring social media trends

Social media managers are also given the duty of tracking relevant trends and the “next big thing” on various social media platforms. This a crucial and time-sensitive task as trends on social media keep popping up at a rapid pace and drop out of relevance just as fast. A social media executive should be able to monitor social media for trends, following which they can plan and inform the company of the appropriate course of action for capitalizing on it as soon as possible. At the same time, every single trend would not work with the company’s unique brand image. Therefore a manager should be able to identify which trends are appropriate for the company to pursue.

6. Interacting with an audience

Social media managers are tasked with handling the company’s engagement with its followers. They build an audience for the company and have to maintain a healthy relationship with them. Therefore they should be able to interact with others in a way that guarantees a positive opinion and repeat engagement. They have the responsibilities of answering questions or doubts raised by concerned individuals, addressing the public while representing the company, and responding to applicants from social media platforms.

7. So how can you assess and hire social media managers?

When it comes to hiring a social media manager, there are a few key qualifications and skills that you should look for. 

a. Platform Expertise:

• A strong candidate should possess a deep understanding of various social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and others.
• They should stay updated on the latest features, trends, and best practices for each platform.
• Proficiency in creating engaging and effective content that resonates with the target audience is essential.

b. Alignment with Company Goals:

• The candidate should grasp the overall goals of the company and align their social media strategy for each platform accordingly.
• This alignment should be evident through their personal social media accounts or past client work.

c. Communication and Writing Skills:

• Strong communication and writing skills are crucial for crafting compelling and persuasive messages.
• These skills encourage audience engagement and facilitate the effective communication of the company's brand image.
• The ability to interact with customers and followers professionally and amiably is a necessity for addressing concerns and complaints.

d. Team Collaboration:

• Social media management requires effective collaboration with various departments within the organization, such as marketing, sales, legal, and customer service teams.
• The candidate should be open to teamwork and display leadership qualities, effectively communicating their ideas to unite different departments towards a common goal.

e. Organizational Skills:

• Highly organized and detail-oriented candidates are better equipped to multitask in the fast-paced and ever-changing field of social media management.
• These qualities are vital to managing the demands and fluctuations of social media without becoming overwhelmed.

f. Proven Track Record:

• An ideal candidate should have a proven track record of success in social media management.
• Past experience in managing social media accounts for other companies and examples of successful campaigns or initiatives they led are strong indicators of competence.

g. Transparency and Meritocracy:

• The candidate's past clientele and online record provide transparency into their methods and success.
• Hiring decisions are based on merit, as candidates are selected based on their demonstrated skills and achievements.

By structuring the information in this way, it becomes easier to assess and prioritize the qualifications and considerations when hiring a social media manager.

Finally, when it comes to hiring a social media manager, don't be afraid to think outside the box. While traditional marketing or communications degrees may be a plus, they aren't necessarily a must. Look for candidates who have a passion for social media and a deep understanding of its potential. Social media favors those who can put a unique spin on popular trends and topics and candidates who display that innovation or possess the quirks that would make the company’s account stand out are more valuable candidates than those who do not.