What makes a good Social Media Manager?
Whether your Social Media Manager is a freelancer or part of a marketing agency, managing their schedule and staying motivated without much external supervision is crucial. Meeting deadlines and maintaining productivity are essential for success. But let's break it down a bit more. When we talk about deadlines, I’m really talking about your Social Media Manager managing their time well. After all, it’s in the job title!
Here are some things to keep in mind when searching for a Social Media Manager to work with your brand:
Like I said before, having time management and organizational skills are a must
Marketing agencies and freelancers tend to have multiple clients; therefore, they absolutely NEED to be organized to keep from making mistakes.
Many of us juggle three or more clients at a time, but it's never to the point of chaos because helpful tools like Trello, Notion, or even simple spreadsheets can be lifesavers for managing tasks and timelines. These tools help ensure that nothing falls through the cracks and that each client's needs are met efficiently.
Don't hesitate to ask about workload
When choosing a Social Media Manager, don’t be afraid to ask about their workload. Finding someone who isn’t overworked or overloaded with clients is important. You want to ensure they have enough time and energy to dedicate to your brand.
Trust me when I say this, I’ve worked in multiple agencies & internships where the company would take on far too many clients than the team could handle. The best example I could give you is based on my recent agency experience working with over 20+ Social Media clients at one time before freelancing on my own. It was the last straw before I left the corporate marketing world because what these agencies were doing was morally wrong and the work was rushed, and quite honestly horrific — but, a lot of agencies do it and it’s very scammy because the work that is done never provides results due to the excessive load.
ASK QUESTIONS, PLEASE!
Being creative and staying up-to-date
Social media is constantly evolving.
A great Social Media Manager can think creatively to produce engaging content for your brand. This means staying up-to-date with trends and always looking for new ways to connect with your audience. Developing long-term strategies that align with your goals and brand identity is key. This involves planning content calendars and setting goals that drive results over time.
Having strong communication
This is a big one. The biggest, even.
Clear and effective communication helps build and maintain strong working relationships. Your Social Media Manager should keep in touch with you regularly. Even a simple progress report via text or email can make a big difference.
No one wants to be left in the dark wondering when content is going to be sent for approval, posted, created, etc. It can be scary because you’re paying someone for a service you need for your brand.
Example of how a good Social Media Manager communicates: "Hi! Just checking in, letting you know I will have June content to you by EOD tomorrow!"
Good communication leads to an even greater working relationship and ensures everyone is on the same page.
Passion vs. Passing interest
One of the biggest things to look for in a Social Media Manager is passion. Anyone can take a social media course and claim to be a Social Media Manager. Though, true dedication shows in their enthusiasm, creativity, and proactive approach to helping your business grow.
There are a lot of “Social Media Managers” and “Digital Marketers” claiming to be experts. In reality, they think of this role as a side hustle in order to make tons of money fast…. WHICH IS A SCAM. A LIE. The fast success part AND the money part. Big red flag if someone is promising you fast results and big results upfront.
Real Social Media Managers and Digital Marketers know that this role is a lot of work and is not “simply” and “quickly” done on your phone.
It typically takes up to three months to start seeing results on social media. You have to build your brand community, and they need to want to be a part of it. This is done through the creation of a custom social media strategy to help ensure that the content created for your brand is reaching the audience you want and is relatable, and valuable to them. This comes back in the form of reach and engagement. Reach is based on how many people saw your content, and engagement is how the person viewing your content reacted: likes, shares, saves, and comments.
On average, it takes me four to five hours to complete one Content Plan that includes the topic, the caption, and the hashtags/SEO keywords for 12-20 posts per month (depending on client needs).
If it was actually easy, everyone could do it, and stick to it long-term.
Please do your research on who you are looking to hire, and check out their portfolio or any links they have in their bios.
In conclusion, finding the right Social Media Manager can be a game-changer for your business. You can ensure that they have excellent time management skills, a creative mindset, and strong communication abilities through the Discovery Call you set up with them prior to seeing if they are a good fit for your brand.
I always have a Discovery Call with potential clients to see what their needs are, listen to the goals they’d like to work on over time, how I can help them meet those goals, and more.
Understanding these key qualities will help you make an informed decision and set your brand up for success in the long run.
As always, I’m here to share my experience and tips to help you successfully show up on Social Media. If you found this helpful to you, feel free to share this blog to help another business out!
