What Is a Social Media Manager and Do I Need One for My Business?
Currently I have been hired to help run the social media for 3 amazing wedding blog editors ... I love it!! It gives me a thrill!! The title: social media manager is a relatively new idea and I think there is some confusion as to what exactly 'this person' does! So I wanted to address it on The Editor's Touch :)
During my nearly 8 years as a devoted editor to Style Unveiled I grew a social media following that was a combination of my personal following (Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram) and my business following (Facebook and Google+) that equaled almost a quarter of a million followers ... social media is a powerful tool whether you are a local floral boutique in Nashville, TN or a big time wedding blog that has an international reach! It just depends on how you use it to work FOR YOU.
>> What a Social Media Manager Does <<
I do a number of tasks each day for the blog editors who have hired me for their social media ... The most important thing I do is I log in as THEM ... so it's their handle being used ... I am THEM. Consistency is key when it comes to social media if you want to grow your following and have people interact with you.
>> For the Love of Twitter <<
I looooove Twitter ... I have figured out ways to make Twitter work over the years and have found it to be invaluable for any business. There are lots of little tips and tricks that I use ... for instance: most people don't go to their Twitter feed and keep hitting refresh over and over ... they go to their feed, start at the top and browse ... looking for any tidbits they feel inclined to 'click on' or RT or reply to ... then, they're gone!! You have an itty bitty WINDOW of opportunity to reach each of your followers on Twitter and one of the tasks I have been hired for is to make sure each account is THERE in the feed when their followers pop in for a quick Twitter fix. I am also actively making sure the #HASHTAGS I use are popular and make sense in each Tweet I send out for my clients.
>> Commenting and Liking Stuff on Facebook <<
Being interactive on Facebook is another task that fills my time ... going as the page of the blog and commenting, liking, and sharing from pages that are a good match for the brand of the blog. This is a great way to introduce yourself on Facebook to grow more likers for your page. I've talked before about how business Facebook pages are quite impossible to figure out ... but again: staying consistent and making sure you have a voice daily will help make sure you exist to someone on the ever popular FB feed.
>> Keeping Followers Pinterested <<
The most activity I do for each of my clients on their social media is work their Pinterest crowd ... blogs typically gain the most traffic from Pinterest and making sure their content is uploaded to Pinterest is not only important, but time consuming! Hence: the use for a social media manager ... When I log in as my clients I am not only pinning their current posts, but making sure that their old content is given a new life on Pinterest ... commenting on images from your source link that other pinners have found and pinned to their boards ... and of course, pinning from other blogs << we've talked before about playing nice in the sandbox!! Pinterest is a place where you want to make sure to give and receive ... the scratch my back and I'll scratch yours mentality.
>> Can a Localized Wedding Professional Benefit from a Hiring a Social Media Manager? <<
If you have a goal to grow your following and become more active across your social media, but you are finding your time just doesn't allow for it, then hiring a experienced social media manager can be hugely beneficial! I can only speak for myself, but when I am hired by a client to help run their social media I always ask: what are your goals ... where do you want to see the most growth ... what social media outlets do you want to see an increase of followers with ... etc, etc, etc!! The goal of a social media manager is to make sure YOU are educated on what will help while making sure YOUR goals are being attended to. It's a balancing act :) So, if you are a local wedding pro who focuses on local weddings in your area, you may benefit from a few hours a week of social media guidance and managing ... making sure you are active on Twitter and that your Tweets are of interest, having all your blog posts and work Pinned to your Pinterest boards, having a daily post on your Facebook page or having a few a day scheduled out through the week ... and on and on and on!
I am very passionate about social media ... and these days brides are on it!! They use their social media accounts and will be there, so you should make sure you are there too ... as often as possible :)
Contact me if you have questions about social media managing! I'd be happy to help answer any questions.
XO~ Heather