Does Your Organization Truly Need A Social Media Manager?

To answer this question, you must first answer several others and take a moment to gain an understanding of your organization, goals and future plans in social media. Certain businesses lend themselves to social interactions and others go as far as to demand a certain social element. For example, products such as activities, travel, events, or event ticket sales, DVDs and books are often socially marketed. But even if you are not promoting a social event or experience, you are still ‘liked’ by your audience and customers. Having a social media presence allows them to show their love of the brand publicly and easily share that with their network of friends.

So ask yourself: Does your business call for the use of social media? Will it benefit from using social media? Do you plan to make money with your social media efforts? If the answer is yes, then you may need a social media manager, or at least a social media program to help achieve these results. But first, let’s take a closer look at just what a social media manager does.

A social media manager is the person who manages your social media sites, right? Yes… and so much more. This person is the front line to your online brand image – - and don’t underestimate your reputation. This person is also the first point of contact for your customer service and customer retention opportunities. They are able to spot and track trends, as well as identify potentially damaging information.

Your social media manager will create a strategy and routine for posting on your company’s online profiles such as your facebook status updates. He or she will have the organization and ability to create content, build links, and network by connecting with the right people. A thorough understanding of the organization is key in order to facilitate the transfer of communications from customers to the relevant company department.

The social media manager should be highly organized and passionate about the company he or she represents. The person should be someone the organization trusts with their reputation. While their role may vary from customer service oriented to more sales and marketing oriented, it will involve all of these things and more at some point or another.

Truth is, anyone can make a status update, tweet, pin, surf the web or create that LinkedIn profile, but a social media manager approaches these tasks with a strategy. Actually managing a company’s online identity requires more than setting up a facebook page and chatting with fans. Interactions are targeted and not random. Timing and topics are chosen to keep audiences engaged, and drive toward the company’s goals while supporting a brand image. So, does your organization need a social media manager?

Companies that have full time staff devoted to the social media realm are slim. Many hire outside agencies or commit multiple staff members to the role of community management. There is not a right or wrong approach, but rather a social media strategy that is right for one company versus another.

This and many other educational articles helping web professionals understand the challenges of the web have been prepared for you by Jacob Smith thanks to SEOMap – the keyword strategy experts.