Now that social media is firmly entrenched as a key component of any company’s overall marketing strategy, there’s a lot of discussion about the key roles and responsibilities for social media team members. After all, we’ve come a long way since a single person could handle the social media role alone. Here’s a closer look at the seven key elements of a social media team.
#1: The Social Media Manager
You can think of the social media manager as the person who is responsible for not just coming up with the overall social media strategy, but also executing this strategy on a day-to-day basis. This includes issues like which platforms to use (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), what type of content to post, and how regularly to post each type of content.
#2: The Content Creator
Social media needs plenty of original content in order to succeed – blog posts, infographics, video clips, and podcasts are just the start. All of this content then has to be cut down, edited or resized for different platforms. For example, you’re not going to be able to use a full blog post on Twitter, and you’re not going to be able to use a full-length YouTube video on Instagram.
#3: The Content Curator
One best practice in social media is to share and celebrate content that enhances your overall brand or message. In other words, you can’t just be posting your own content on social media if you want to be successful. So somebody on your team has to be scrolling through news feeds to find interesting content to post, and somebody has to be looking through industry blog posts to find little tidbits or insights to highlight.
#4: The Community Manager
The community manager is the person who puts “social” in social media. In this role, the community manager responds to posts, builds relationships and engages with members of the community. Ideas and comments that are bubbling up within this community are then relayed back to the social media manager.
#5: The Influencer Manager
In many ways, the influencer manager is just a more highly specialized version of the community manager. Instead of connecting with the entire community, the influencer manager is charged with interacting with all the high-profile members of the community. The influencer manager, for example, would help to identify potential brand ambassadors and VIP guest content creators. And, of course, the influencer manager would also help to recruit third-party influencers – the type of celebrity, A-list influencers who can give your brand a huge boost.
#6: The Social Media Monitor
Somebody has to be in charge of metrics, right? The social media monitor keeps a close watch on performance, and also helps to flag issues that need immediate attention. For example, if a customer is complaining about a product, the social media monitor needs to know about it ASAP.
#7: The Social Media Advertiser
While a strategy of organic growth might be preferable at the outset, sooner or later, you’re going to need the ability to run your own ads on social media, and especially on Facebook. That’s the job of the social media advertiser.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, you really need a diverse set of skills to succeed in today’s competitive social media marketplace. With all seven of these roles in place, you will be in the best possible position to grow your company’s brand on social media.
*This post originally appeared on socialmedia hq.
