How to Hire a Social Media Manager (Cost and Tips)

Having a presence on social media channels connects you with your target audience and increases your brand awareness.

But which social networks should you focus on?

Each social media platform is unique, with its own audience, popular formats, and algorithms. Attempting to learn them all takes time—something you may lack as a business owner. Luckily, there are freelancers experienced in social media marketing that you can hire.

In this guide, we’ll cover how to find the right social media manager and related trends to watch in 2024.

What does a social media manager do?

A social media manager curates and manages a brand’s presence across various social media channels. This involves several specific tasks, but consist of three three major categories: content creation, community management, and analytics and strategy.

Content creation

Creating branded social media content helps brands get noticed, share their message, and drive traffic and conversions. A social media manager will tailor your content to each platform and post it when your audience is most active. Organized social media managers will have a content calendar to track the performance of all of your social media posts.

This includes tracking likes, comments, shares, and clicks. Then if your goal is to drive leads and sales, then they will track form submissions and purchases.

Examples of social media content include:

• Videos

• Pictures

• Blog posts

• Infographics

Community management

Social media managers keep your audience engaged and happy across all social networks. Many customers turn to social media platforms for customer service, so it’s important to have an active presence and respond to consumers in a timely manner.

Social media managers perform community management by:

• Responding to comments

• Responding to messages

• Sharing relevant posts

• Engaging with relevant accounts

Analytics and strategy

Social media managers use social media analytics tools to measure audience engagement to better understand content performance, and adjust accordingly. They often develop a social media strategy to reach the marketing team’s business goals.

Some popular social media analytics software include:

• Hootsuite

• Google Analytics

• Sprout Social

• Keyhole

Benefits of hiring a social media manager

There are 4.8 billion users on social media—but few have a deep understanding of how to reach the right audience on the right platform. A social media manager doesn’t just post on social media for you—they’re an invaluable team member and strategist who improves everything from your online presence to lead generation.

Here are some advantages of hiring a social media manager:

• Increased brand awareness. Consistently posting quality content that resonates with your target audience will gain you more customers.

• Heightened ROI. As a social media expert, they can develop a content marketing strategy tailored to your goals.

• Improved engagement. Developing relationships with customers, other brands, and influencers can extend your reach and garner more views, clicks, and comments.

• Enhanced customer service. Having a team member available to answer customer queries will improve customer satisfaction.

Hiring a social media manager in 5 steps

Unsure of what to look for when bringing a social media manager into your startup or established business? Follow these five steps to find the right person to manage your social media accounts and develop a successful marketing strategy.

1. Decide which social channels to target

Different demographics spend time on different social platforms. While a social media manager can identify which platforms to target, it’s best to have a general idea before the hiring process begins. This way, you can attract candidates who are familiar with your chosen platform.

Here’s a quick rundown of the most popular social networks:

• TikTok. Best for a younger demographic. Post behind-the-scenes, funny, and casual content. More tips here.

• Instagram. Best for a younger and middle-aged demographic. Post aesthetic images, user-generated content, and professional product photography. More tips here.

• Facebook. Best for a middle-aged and older demographic. Post business information, community-centric content, and images. More tips here.

• LinkedIn. Best for B2B businesses. Post thought leadership content, industry insights, and infographics. More tips here.

Chart showing the most popular social networks worldwide as of October 2023. Source

2. Identify the necessary tasks they need to perform

Social media management involves scheduling posts and identifying influencers for influencer marketing. Be specific about the duties you expect your social media manager to perform. Most social media experts offer other marketing services like email marketing.

Here are some specific tasks that social media managers perform:

• Create monthly reports about social media analytics

• Monitor social media trends

• Foster online communities

• Schedule social posts

• Use AI to create a social media strategy

• Run social media advertising campaigns

3. Write a detailed job description:

Craft a detailed job description—the more thorough, the better. This is your time to sell your brand and clarify exactly what you expect from a social media manager. Don’t just outline the employee’s responsibilities. If you want to attract the best talent, explain why someone should want to work for you.

A good job description should include:

• Compensation

• Job responsibilities

• Qualifications and skills

• Company information

You can hire a freelancer to help find superstar talent by writing a professional job description. Ensure these descriptions are detailed enough that potential applicants have clear expectations before applying for the position.

4. Interview candidates

Narrow your list of applicants based on their resumes and qualifications. During the interview, ask questions relevant to the role.

Here are some example questions:

• What experience do you have managing social media accounts?

• How do you measure the success of a social media campaign?

• What strategies do you employ to engage followers and increase brand awareness?

• How do you stay current on social media trends and best practices?

• What tools do you use to manage multiple social media accounts?

At the end of the day, hire someone you trust.

“Trust is a necessary element that you need to have,” says Joe Manna, marketing lead for Convrrt, a landing page builder for SaaS companies. “Trust that they're doing their best, they'll figure out the right approach, and that mistakes are opportunities to improve. When I worked with an all-star, she was able to run point on the company's annual user conference, monetizing the social channels and driving online recording sales through a detailed and engaging social content plan.”

5. Onboard and train your new social media manager

Once you hire someone who meets all your requirements, onboard them properly. How you onboard them will vary if you’re onboarding a freelance social media manager or an in-housesocial media manager. Either way, provide them with all necessary access codes, logins, and platform information. If there’s anything specific they need to know about your niche, be sure to provide relevant materials about your brand’s voice and your brand identity. Work with them to set social media goals at the beginning, and check in regularly.

Trends relevant to social media management in 2024

A large part of social media management is knowing how evolving trends are impacting the industry. It’s important for your social media manager—and you—to be aware of these trends.

Here’s what we expect to see in 2024.

Metaverse and virtual experiences

The metaverse is a simulated online world where users can interact with each other in 3D environments. Minecraft is an example of a metaverse, but the potential of this technology reaches far beyond gaming. It has the potential to revolutionize social media and online shopping experiences.

Virtual experiences coupled with social media open the doors to unseen creative potential. It’s still important to make sure these virtual experiences are here to stay—and not just hype—before investing a lot of time and capital into these endeavors.

Screenshot from PacSun’s metaverse activation campaign. Source

AI and automation

AI helps businesses solve real-world problems, including social media management. When AI and humans come together, the potential for creativity and personalization skyrockets. AI can analyze user data and behavior patterns to better target social media content and ads to the right audiences.

Automation also enables small businesses to streamline customer service interactions over socials and create more high-quality content. The AI in social media market size was valued at $2.68 billion in 2022, and could reach $27.67 billion in 2032. AI is a trend that’s here to stay, and will help businesses unlock higher levels of personalization and productivity.

Chart showing the expected growth of intelligence in the social media market. Source

Video content dominance

If your social media manager suggests increasing video content in 2024, consider that a green flag. The continued popularity of TikTok highlights the growing interest in video—by 2025, there’s expected to be around 955 million TikTok users. According to a study from Wyzowl, 91% of companies use video as a marketing effort.

Short-form content is especially popular on platforms like TikTok and Instagram. Entrepreneurs wanting to grow their social media presence need a social media manager who understands the importance of video in 2024.

Chart showing video use over time from companies as a marketing strategy. Source

Data privacy and compliance

With more and more personal data being collected and stored by social media platforms, consumers will increasingly look for assurances that brands will handle their data securely and ethically. If you want to build trust among your audience, adhere to all data privacy and compliance regulations. It’s an important conversation to have with your social media manager.

Freelance vs. in-housesocial media managers

Depending on the size of your business and your social media needs, you’ll either want to hire a freelance social media manager or an employee who does social media as a full-time job.

Cost

The cost of hiring a social media manager varies depending on their level of experience, skillset, and qualifications. Those looking to hire part-time or freelance social media managers often pay hourly rates ranging from $15-$50 per hour. For in-housesocial media managers, salaries may range from $30,000-$60,000 per year.

Also, factor in the pricing of the marketing tools and software the new hire will use. And full-time employees receive benefits, which you’ll need to consider.

Skills

Regardless if you hire full-time or a freelancer, you need to find someone with expertise in content creation and digital marketing. If you’re hiring a full-time employee, look for someone with general knowledge about everything from search engine optimization (SEO) and graphic design to marketing campaigns.

When outsourcing social media work, you can limit your search to someone with a more specific skill set. For example, if you want social media help on LinkedIn, search for someone who knows how to use hashtags and LinkedIn groups effectively. Ideally, you’d need them to have strong copywriting skills and the ability to analyze appropriate metrics.

Where to look

When hiring a full-time employee, you can post your job ad on various job boards. Ask other business owners for referrals, and use LinkedIn’s impressive reach to search for candidates there.

When hiring a freelance social media manager, search on Fiverr for freelancers to delegate business work to. Join Fiverr and access a growing marketplace of freelancers skilled in everything from social media videos to social media marketing and more.

Sign up to Fiverr today to get started.