Do you want to give a voice to people, organizations, and brands via social media?
Social media managers help build awareness of people and products. It's a way to use your knowledge of social media platforms, trends, and creative digital media making.
With 5.85 billion social media users predicted by 2027, people are needed who can schedule, analyze, and create engaging content to build a presence online.
Is social media management for you? Let's explore together.
What is social media managment?
Social media managers use social media (like Instagram and YouTube) to achieve the communication and digital marketing goals of an individual or organisation.
The role involves:
Creativity
People skills
Organisation
Learning to tell compelling stories
Developing a good eye for design
Engaging an audience.
In your day-to-day, you might create content, respond to comments, and use software tools to review and analyze metrics such as social media engagement (likes and clicks).
What will you learn in social media management?
While a university or college program isn't always necessary for a job in the field, social media managers typically have a bachelor’s degree.
You can learn about social media management as part of any of the following programs:
Arts
Business administration
Creative or digital media
Communications
Journalism
Marketing
Public relations
Sciences
Social communication
Social media
You'll learn practical skills such as how to:
Develop a strategy to create and oversee social media campaigns
Produce images and videos with tools such as Canva and Adobe Creative Suite
Schedule content with a social media calendar or scheduling tools
Review social media data, analytics, and metrics using software like Hootsuite
Write in a copywriting style
By the end of your studies, you'll likely build a portfolio of your work to show future employers or clients and showcase a potential social media campaign. Some programs offer internships in real-world situations such as part of a social media marketing team.
Quiz
You speak to the admissions office of your local university. What should you ask? Select all that apply:
What are social media management career options?
Other than working directly as a social media manager, social media and marketing specialists are in high-demand in roles such as:
Online community managers
Online communications directors
Social media analysts, directors, and strategists
Many social media managers work as freelancers or as part of a social media agency.
You might even manage the social media of your favorite influencer or celebrity!
Photo by Austin Distel on UnsplashHow to prepare for social media management studies?
Not many professors encourage you to use social media, but here they might!
Learning how to use social media channels to build a personal presence and/or manage an online community will likely be the first step of the learning process. Consider:
Creating an online community, or moderating an existing one
Volunteering to manage the social media of a local business or nonprofit
Cold calling or emailing influencers to pitch yourself to them
Saving money by seeing if you are eligible for scholarships and grants
Experimenting with free software like Hootsuite's social media tools
Build a portfolio of existing work to help you with your application
Take Action
Are you still interested in studying social media management?
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