Does Your SMB Need a Social Media Manager?
Posted by aonenetworks On August 22, 2015
As the social media channels you need to manage grow, so does your need for the time to manage them. Sometimes you can’t quite find the time yourself, and you need to pass the hat on to somebody else. Occasionally, this means hiring a social media manager – someone who not only responds to inquiries, but helps your social media pages grow. When you find yourself spending a lot more time on social media than you’d like, then maybe it’s time to look into a social media manager.
Is It Time to Hire?
Obviously, bringing a new team member on board does come with questions and sometimes even hesitations. Do you have the funds to pay someone? Do you need someone full time, or do you just need a part time social media manager? Can you hire remotely, or do they need to come into the office every day?
The biggest question is this: can you make the responsibilities of a social media manager another employee’s responsibility? In some cases, five to ten hours a week is all you’re going to need from someone – does someone that’s already in your office have that time to spare?
These are all questions that are important to think about before hiring.
The Benefits of a Dedicated Social Media Manager
A social media manager’s job doesn’t stop at simply looking at and answering questions from the public. A true social media manager should be turning social media into an art. Scheduling tweets, looking for new followers, engaging people in groups that pertain to your niche, and looking for new forms of social media are just a few of the ways they can benefit your business. Small businesses often see a large ROI when they hire a social media manager; it helps a brand grow. The more you grow, the more people notice and want to interact with you.
In addition, you can devote your time to more important things, which means more productivity for you.
The Cons of Hiring a Dedicated Social Media Manager
The biggest issue with hiring a manager for your social media is that you’ll have less power over your company’s “voice.” While you can always provide guidelines, your person is still going to do what a person does and develop your company all on their own. This may mean it isn’t exactly how you envisioned it, and you may have to deal with the consequences of letting someone else speak for you across the Internet.
The Cost of a Social Media Manager
The cost of hiring any full-time employee can be shocking, but social media managers – since they’ve become more popular – cost a pretty penny. Social media managers make anywhere from $20,000 all the way to $100,000 a year, depending strongly on their duties, responsibilities, and if they wear multiple hats as blog writers and website managers often do.
Overall, the benefits, cons, and costs of hiring a social media manager should help you figure out whether you want one or not. Maybe it’s time, and maybe it isn’t – but you can always change your mind later.
