Choosing a social media manager is a big decision. They can be beyond useful to you, your business, and, of course, your online presence, but only if you pick the right one. Everyone does things differently and not every social media manager will be suited for you and your business. This blog is here to help with exactly that!
So, how do you avoid hiring the wrong social media manager? Here are some things to avoid:
They Say They’ll Post Whatever You Want
Sounds like a strange thing not to want, right? Actually, if they tell you they’ll just post whatever you want, don’t choose them! If social media management was just about posting whatever you wanted then you wouldn’t need a social media manager in the first place. They’re there to do far more work than that!
“If the client knew what they wanted posted, they wouldn’t need you [the social media manager]! They are wanting you to help guide them and post what you think would be valuable in the marketplace because you are the expert. Create a plan for them, give them a proposal, and make it work for their business.” – Heather’s Looking Glass
They Neglect Your Values
Having core values is essential to a successful business and/or online presence. Your social media manager needs to be aware of yours and care about them, rather than pushing them off to the side as if they’re just there for show. You always want to be reflecting your values in what you do online, so it’s vital that your social media manager cares and maybe even shares some of your values!
“It’s easy to stray more so when you don’t have a core description of who you are and what your business is all about. Presenting a consistent brand all over social media is critical which is why you should never forget to incorporate your company’s core values into your campaigns.” – Social Report
They Don’t Understand the Importance of Storytelling
Social media may just seem like a place to post random photos, tweets, captions, etc, but a successful social media profile tells a story. A good social media manager knows the importance of this.
Storytelling doesn’t mean your social media needs to explicitly tell some long, dramatic story. Instead, your social media should tell your story. It should showcase who you are. It should share smaller stories about your staff, about your life, about your day. Stories humanize you. If a social media manager doesn’t know the importance of this, don’t hire them!
“No matter what your industry, in order to know where you are going, you have to know where you came from. A good story will anchor you and your audience to something real and make your brand impossible to ignore!” – Like A Voss
They Don’t Prioritize People Skills
Just because this is social media and it’s easy to hide behind a screen does not mean that it isn’t critical for your social media manager to have great people skills. Managing social media is all about people. High engagement is one of the most important things to have on social media for a reason.
“As the face of your company on social media and the person who is likely to be responding to at least some of the messages your brand receives on platforms like Twitter and Facebook, it’s important for social media managers to have conversational skills and empathy to help your customers on social media.” – Buffer
They Don’t Know How to Handle Negative Feedback
Because it’s so easy for people to hide behind their online personas on social media, it’s easy for people to give negative feedback, true or not, without feeling guilty about it. If your social media manager can’t effectively and respectfully respond to negative comments and feedback then it’s clear that they’re not as familiar with social media as they claim.
“It’s not always positive feedback they’re dealing with, they also need to be able to handle negative feedback with care. […] Running any good online community is about treating people with respect and understanding. So look for a manager that really gets what people are all about!” – Like A Voss
They Don’t Know How to Use and Interpret Analytics
Analytics are one of the most useful tools you have to increase your success on social media. If your social media manager isn’t very knowledgeable on how to use and interpret that data you get from your analytics then they’re certainly not the social media manager you want.
“For example, if your goal is to drive traffic from social media channels to your website and drive sales, being able to attribute traffic and conversions back to channels and even certain posts will help your team to understand what content is helping you to achieve your goals.” – Buffer
A social media manager could be just what you need to drive your online presence to the next level, but only if you hire the right one. Keep this list of mistakes to avoid in mind when hiring one and remember to always do your research!
Need help getting your social media presence going? Contact us today to set up a FREE discovery session with our team – we’d love to help!
