Should I be a social media manager? 📲

Photo by Domenico Loia on Unsplash

What is a social media manager?

A social media manager does just that: manages the social media of clients and agencies through "development of digital marketing campaigns." Social media managers impact the content we consume every day on social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and more.

Social media management is a growing industry, expected to boom even more by 2029, with salaries to match.

A career as a social media manager might be perfect for you!

Social media managers often juggle many tasks like checking and responding to many emails, creating social media posts, engaging with audience, and more.

• Prepare strategies for social media campaigns, posts, and content.

• Interact with the target audience to increase engagement.

• Produce relevant content that is useful and interesting to the target audience.

• Gather information on the latest trends and interests.

• Post content at times when engagement is high.

• Search for the best opportunities from brand partnerships.

• Analyze results and engagement from the content.

• Answer questions from customers seeking help through social media.

• Test content on different social media platforms.

• Learn quickly, as there's something new to learn every day.

The short answer is no but there are some things you can do to increase your chances of transitioning into a role as social media manager.

Here are two of the most common ways:

Education/Qualifications Pathway

• Bachelor's degree in one of these fields: marketing, journalism, or communications.

• Short course or certificate: Meta Social Media Marketing Professional Certificate or similar.

Experience/Training Pathway

• An internship or entry-level job with these titles: social media coordinator/ specialist/media associate, etc.

• Promote yourself, your skills, and your services through social media platforms.

Start off by gaining experience in the field through entry level positions like assistant social media marketer or being an intern. You can also cold call or email influencers to pitch yourself to them.

Once you gain some experience, you can transfer your current skills to suit your new position as a social media manager.

Some websites and companies to check out for entry-level social media marketing jobs are:

• LinkedIn

• Meta (parent company of Facebook & Instagram)

• X (formerly known as Twitter)

• Upwork

• Guru

• Fiverr

• Freelancer

Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash

Social media managers can work in different settings including:

• Big companies and corporations

• Small agencies and businesses

• Small startups

• Working with social media influencers

• Working as a freelancer remotely or directly with clients

The average salary for entry level social media manager in the US in 2024 is $57,126 compared to the average salary in Canada is C$50,081. These salaries are for entry level positions but remember the salary will increase as the industry grows and as you become more experienced.

The salaries of social media managers depends on experience, location (country and city), for more accurate salaries based on your specific city, check out Payscale and Glassdoor.

You'll love it if:

• You use social media every day.

• You're familiar with different social media platforms.

• You enjoy working with customers and within a team.

• You love figuring out how to gain more attention for brands online

• You like every day being different.

You'll hate it if:

• You don't enjoy social media.

• You like working alone.

• You want a routine of the same thing every day.

• You don't like learning new things like trends, keeping up with new tools for management, etc.

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