“Ohh… so you’re basically paid to be on Facebook all day?” This comment pops up like clockwork, without fail, every single time someone asks about my job as a social media community manager. It may seem undermining but really, I wouldn’t contest such a notion - it’s actually one of the perks of the job!
Aspiring social media specialists might be wondering: what do we do, exactly? By definition, we are keen on keeping social media profiles and all information on those platforms current, entertaining, and engaging for clients. Yes, by definition, we are (supposedly) fun people! We love our job, and to give you a clue why, here’s a breakdown of what we do on a typical Friday.
5:15AM: The third alarm rings. I have “snoozed” two alarms already and reality slowly sinks in - it’s a new day. I wake up and quickly scan Facebook and Twitter to see if there are any posts that need immediate engagement. I take note on what posts I need to address later, prepare, and make my way to the office.
6:00AM: Arriving at the office, I log into my Webmail account (to check my recent e-mails), my Basecamp account (to get updated on my ongoing projects), my Tickspot account (to punch in my work hours) and Skype (for urgent matters and casual office jibber-jabber). For the next four hours, I do the community management bit of our work. This entails checking and updating the Facebook, Twitter, Google +, Pinterest, and Instagram accounts of our clients, engaging in the posts where fans comment, and promoting posts to maximize their reach.
10:00AM: A coffee break during this time is absolutely necessary. After coming up with witty posts, informative articles, and other engaging content, caffeine is essential to recharge my neurons.
10:15AM: Over the next few hours, I make a posting plan for the next week. The plan includes all the posts and other content that will be published across all media platforms. Using knowledge gained from several webinars and certification classes, I follow the best practices per social media network, as each platform is different. Getting the right curated content is important; the goal of a social media specialist is to have each post radiate the company’s brand and identity.
2:00PM: By this time, probably with another cup of coffee on the side, I would be reviewing the posting plan, making sure the curated content is current and relevant. That is what’s interesting about Social Media: The “social” part is hard to qualify. Its dynamic nature ensures that there are always new things to learn, new strategies to try, and new reading material to, well, read. It’s important to always be in the loop.
2:30PM: Before my shift ends, I set some time aside for Twitter interaction; Hootsuite is my favorite tool when it comes to post engagement. I also take a last look at my published content for the day, and I engage whenever someone comments, likes, or shares. This is also typically the time of day when I ask our reports analyst for the analytics of my clients’ social media pages. Monitoring the performance of the pages is crucial so I know which posts were good, which ones to avoid, and which ones need modification.
3:00PM: My shift officially ends, but that doesn’t mean my quest for new content and refreshing viral information stops. The internet continues to come up with new and exciting news by the hour, so I curate these to make sure I have fresh content I can publish next time.
4:00PM Onwards: Oh please, it’s a Friday. I have a life too, you know.
With this, hopefully you get to have a better idea as to what we do. Nowadays, it is a top priority for most business owners to establish a well-executed social media marketing strategy. As social media has become an important platform for successful marketing, you are sure that, as an aspiring social media community manager, there’s certain growth should you take this career path.
If you think that harnessing the power of social media is the career path for you, join our Social Media team at StraightArrow Corporation! Email your resume to sue@straightarrow.com.ph. Click here to view more openings.
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