Social Media Pro® is in the business of teaching social media management to those who want to become business owners as freelance social media managers.
As people come to us for online training and guidance, we receive inquiries about the social media industry: people curious about starting a new career, those looking to either work part-time or full-time from home, and those interested in freelance jobs and online opportunities.
One of the most frequently asked questions is ‘What is the job of a freelance social media manager?’
In this article, we will give you an overview of what it is like to start working with clients in the digital marketing industry!
Freelance Social Media Managers are Business Owners
Freelancers are business owners. It’s important to remember this at all times, but especially as you meet with potential clients, or are in the process of onboarding clients.
Being a business owner means that instead of bringing a CV or resume – which is needed to to apply for a job, a portfolio or case studies are preferred to showcase past projects.
As a business owner, meetings with potential clients are business meetings, not ‘interviews’. Again, this is a mindset shift for those who are new to business ownership. It is important to get this right from the start.
Last but not least, freelancers decide what they work on, when they work and whether they want to accept projects, or reject them.
Yes, freelancers sometimes fire their clients, too!
Social Media Managers Guide The Business Owner
As a social media marketing manager, guiding the business owner to make marketing decisions for their company is an important task.
Social media managers are hired to represent a small business, or corporation, and maintain their online presence, being in charge of all social media accounts.
Guidance requires an understanding of the large marketing picture in the form of a marketing plan in essence making the social media manager a business consultant. Learn more about creating a social media strategic marketing plan next.
Social Media Managers Write Marketing Plans
Social Media Pro® recommends and teaches social media managers to start out the relationship with any new client by creating a social media strategic plan.
Without a clear plan of action you cannot create the right type of content to reach goals and objectives.
This written plan should include a competitor’s analysis, a social media audit, keyword research and a strategy to move forward in the next 6-12 months with actionable items.The should include social media platform recommendations.
This written marketing plan will be the foundation for the content plan you will be executing as the social media manager.
Social Media Managers Create Content
Social media manager’s day-to-day activity includes full responsibility of the content creation process from start to finish.
This process starts with good ideas, moves onto team task management, an editorial calendar, content creation and working with a graphic designer, a content calendar and eventually moves through this process into content approval and scheduling out content to all relevant social media channels.
Social Media Managers Market Product and Services
When hired as a freelance social media manager you market products and services.
On social media, that means promoting products and services using different types of content in a variety of formats to reach as many potential customers, aka ideal customers, as possible.
Marketing products and services is a time consuming task. Small business owners who don’t have an in-house marketing team often hire a social media freelancer to take over this task to free up time.
Customer Service and Community Management
While social media managers are not hired to provide customer service, they often are the front person to the business on social media .
It’s important to set up a customer service and reputation management plan to implement. When questions, inquiries and complaints arrive in inboxes, there should be an established procedure in place to alert the business owner or appropriate employee to this issue.
Social media managers are thus the liaison between the business and the consumer!
Additional services to offer include community management. Community Management is complementary to social media management and can be done side by side. Community managers are responsible for having online conversations with the client’s audience.
Social Media Managers Analyze Data
As a social media manager in charge of content creation, creating monthly social media reports to present to clients is part of a monthly to do list.
Clients need data!
We recommend you schedule a 15 to 30 minute monthly meeting to deliver a data report each month.
Social Media Managers Are NOT Responsible for Sales!
What is not part of a freelance social media manager’s job?
Selling.
Sales.
Responsibility for sales.
What does this mean?
“The sales team owns the sales funnel. But as a B2B marketer, you feed the top of their funnel.” – Doug Kessler
While social media managers are not responsible for sales, this is something that needs to be clearly communicated to every prospect!
Expectations set up front about outcome and ROI are imperative for a healthy and thriving client relationship.
As recommended above, having that conversation about goals and expectations as part of your strategic planning session and plan is the best way to prevent this misunderstanding.
Unless a social media manager has access to all sales tools and is in control of the website, landing page, Facebook ads and all sales copy (think email marketing, flyers, PPT etc.) they can not be held responsible for sales.
Social media managers can drive traffic to a landing page or website with content, but if the clicks don’t convert, that’s a sales issue, not a social media issue!
Read this paragraph again! Make clear to any potential clients what you are and what you are not responsible for and agree on it!
How To Become a Freelance Social Media Manager?
Are you interested in becoming a social media manager?
Ready to find out what it really takes to become a Freelance Social Media Manager?
In this 2021 guide, you’ll learn everything you need to know about what a social media manager does, how much can be earned, and how to become a social media manager.
Download this FREE guide to learn the answers to the most frequently asked questions about Social Media Management.
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I am a Certified Social Media Manager, Strategist, International Keynote Speaker, Organic Specialist and Agile marketer! Blogging is my creative outlet. Running, hiking and skiing are how I recharge. You’ll recognize me on stage and online by my always present orange glasses, a nod to my Dutch heritage.
