Author: Zain Khan

It’s harder than ever to stand out as a job aspirant in this crowded online environment. However, with careful planning, you can maximize your chances of getting noticed and hired by the right recruiters. LinkedIn, the largest professional social network, makes it easier by providing the necessary tools and networking opportunities. In this guide, we’ll talk about the power of using LinkedIn to get your first social media marketing job. By the end, you’ll have all the essential strategies that you can implement right away to maximize your chances of getting hired as soon as possible. Let’s dive in.

Why Use LinkedIn for Job Search?

It’s no secret that LinkedIn is the most popular professional networking platform in the world, making it a go-to place for recruiters to hire professional talent. According to research, 87% of recruiters use LinkedIn to find ideal candidates for jobs. So, if you’re a student or a job seeker, having an optimized LinkedIn profile and working on your presence on this platform is a no-brainer.

The problem, however, is that most candidates don’t invest their time and energy into keeping their profiles optimized and attractive to potential recruiters. Below, we’re uncovering some strategies and methods to help you get your first social media job.

How to Use LinkedIn Effectively for Job Search

Once you have a LinkedIn profile, here’s a step-by-step guide on making it irresistible to potential employers.

Optimize Your Profile

Start by optimizing your profile page with a professional headshot and an attractive banner. Write a comprehensive bio without fluff to showcase:

• Who you are
• What you offer
• Who do you offer it to

Your bio should also include the keywords you’re trying to rank your profile for.

Add Relevant Skills

You don’t want your LinkedIn profile to have a list of skills that are no longer relevant. For instance, don’t add “Python programming” as a skill if you’re not going to use it in your job.

Highlight Recent Experience

Experience helps you develop the right skillset, which is why recruiters give it a lot of importance while weighing potential candidates for a role. The more relevant experience you have, the higher your probability of getting an interview. Again, avoid adding irrelevant experiences just for the sake of it.

Use a Powerful Headline

Your LinkedIn profile headline is your elevator pitch – it should grab attention, and communicate your expertise, and how you can help businesses. For instance, if you’re a digital marketer, your headline could be “Digital marketing expert with 5+ years of experience helping agencies get more clients”.

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Build Your Network

Once you have an optimized LinkedIn profile, it’s time to build some meaningful connections with fellow professionals and potential employers. Networking is a long-term game, so patience is the primary requirement. A great way to find like-minded people on LinkedIn is by getting active in industry groups and offering value. You can write helpful posts, add relevant comments, and send connection requests to maximize your visibility.

Use Advanced Search

LinkedIn’s advanced search is a powerful way to find your ideal client or recruiter. Using this feature, you can find job posts or listings that match your interests and skills.

Join and Engage in Industry Groups

Groups are online communities that connect like-minded individuals and professionals. LinkedIn groups can help you land your first social media job faster if you use them right. Join active LinkedIn groups in your industry/niche and be an active member.

Use Outreach

By optimizing your profile with target keywords and for potential employers, you can attract inbound leads on autopilot. Recruiters may find you and reach out themselves if they need your services. But, you can be more proactive in your approach by reaching out to decision-makers in your industry. For instance, if you want to work in a particular company, reach out to their CEO with your offer.

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Create Content Consistently

LinkedIn lets you create different types of content, including posts, polls, and articles. By regularly posting about your topic of expertise, you position yourself as an authority. As a result, companies will trust you and will be less hesitant to give you a role.

Using LinkedIn Effectively for Job Search: FAQs

Let’s talk about a few frequently asked questions about using LinkedIn effectively for job search.

How Do I Optimize My LinkedIn for a Job Search?

Start by identifying your niche, target audience, and target role. Add your target keywords in all important sections of your profile and include relevant skills and experiences.

How Effective is LinkedIn for Finding a Job?

LinkedIn is probably the most powerful platform when it comes to finding a job in this digitally-connected world. It lets you apply for jobs directly, connect with industry experts, and build a long-term network.

How Do You Use LinkedIn Searches Effectively?

You can use LinkedIn searches to find potential employers and recruitment agencies. The feature lets you filter your results based on several factors like groups, companies, and services.

How Do I Increase My Chances of Getting a Job on LinkedIn?

Use a professional headshot with a compelling headline highlighting your key expertise. Join industry groups, share helpful content, and position yourself as an authority. Keep yourself up to date with the latest trends and engage with people’s content for maximum visibility.

Conclusion

Having an optimized and active LinkedIn profile is a must for every job seeker. It doesn’t only improve your credibility, but can also help you get your first social media job. However, it can be hard to stand out when you’re new to the platform. Use the strategies discussed above to get noticed by the right people and land your first job as a social media marketing specialist.

Start by optimizing your profile by uploading a professional headshot and a banner image. Write a compelling headline that showcases your expertise, who you help, and how you can help them. Create a comprehensive bio that has all the important things your potential employer would want to know before hiring you.  Plus, add relevant experiences, skills, and educational qualifications/certifications. I

With an optimized LinkedIn profile, you can confidently start posting content in your niche, join relevant groups, and send connection requests for improved visibility. Remember that networking is an ongoing process and the content you publish on your profile positions you as an authority and improves the likelihood of getting hired.

Related Post: Influencer vs. Content Creator – An In-Depth Comparison 

Becoming an influencer or a content creator may seem like an easy task. After all, anyone with a camera can shoot videos. In reality, it requires the right strategy and a lot of consistent effort. And, although some areas overlap, content creators and influencers aren’t the same people. An influencer is mostly a content creator, but a content creator isn’t always an influencer. In this guide, we’ll talk about the differences and similarities between the two jobs and how you can pursue both as a social media marketer. Let’s dive in.

Who is an Influencer?

An influencer can be anyone with some sort of influence over a decent number of audience in a particular niche. As an influencer, you can build a following using different types of content, such as videos, Tweets, Reels, blog posts, and more. A niche influencer is one that has a following on a singular topic. People listen to what these influencers say and recommend as they’ve built credibility on that topic over time. Businesses work with influencers to introduce their product to a new yet relevant audience.

Who is a Content Creator?

A content creator is a relatively broad term. The profession involves creating a variety of content types including videos, images, text, and gifs. A content creator can be an influencer, a freelancer, a job holder, a blogger, etc. Unlike influencers, you don’t have to have a social media following as a content creator.

Influencer vs. Content Creator: The Difference

An influencer is someone who has a decent number of followers and has the ability to influence their purchasing decisions. A content creator, on the other hand, creates all sorts of content on a variety of topics. They focus on creating helpful and valuable content. Content creators aren’t always influencers as they can have different roles such as managing social media accounts for clients. Influencers, on the other hand, work on building their own following and working with brands on a project basis.

Pros of Becoming a Content Creator

Flexibility

As a content creator, you can work on your own time at your own pace. You also don’t have to stick to a place and can work from anywhere in the world. You’re not tied to a 9 – 5 job, which gives you more freedom to indulge in other activities of your life.

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Monetization Potential

Good content can help you generate a lot of money. There are several ways you can monetize a piece of content, including inducing digital products, e-commerce products, affiliate products, and display advertising. Plus, you can offer your services as a freelance content creator or a full-time employee of a brand.

Learning and Growth

Content creation allows you to discover new trends, learn different skills, and polish your creative abilities. As you grow as a content creator, you can see yourself improving personally and professionally.

Cons of Becoming a Content Creator

Like any other profession, content creator also has its drawbacks.

High Competition

If you’re a new content creator who doesn’t know how to crack the code, it can be pretty tough to stand out and gain enough eyeballs for your content. Understanding different social platforms and their algorithms is an important aspect of successful content creation.

Income Instability

Unless you’re a full-time employee of a company or a brand, maintaining a stable income can be hard as a content creator. If you’re a freelancer, you’re dependent on the flow of clients. If you’re a solo content creator, you have to make sure your content generates enough revenue.

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Platform Dependency

As a content creator, you’re producing content on different platforms. These platforms have their own rules and regulations as to which type of content gets the most visibility. Therefore, whichever platform you’re generating content for, you’re depending on it to some extent.

Pros of Becoming an Influencer

According to Statista, the influencer marketing industry has more than tripled since 2019. Let’s now talk about the advantages of being an influencer.

Community Building

As a successful influencer, you have a community of followers who are interested in your opinions and recommendations. With a loyal and engaged community, you can promote anything you want under the umbrella of your niche or industry.

Monetization Opportunities

Once you have a niche following that trusts your recommendations, you can start monetizing your influence. Probably the most profitable way to monetize a niche following is by partnering up with a brand.

Cons of Becoming an Influencer

Here are a couple of cons of being an influencer.

Pressure to Maintain Image

As an influencer, you can shape people’s perceptions and thinking. However, you need to maintain your image to be able to enjoy that influence.

Dependency on Algorithms

Influencers are typically popular on a certain platform such as YouTube or Instagram. These platforms have unique algorithms and you have to satisfy these algorithms as an influencer.

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Oversaturation

Influencer marketing is a highly in-demand industry, which is why it’s also pretty popular among marketers. More and more marketers are trying to build a following, making this industry highly competitive.

Influencer vs. Content Creator: Which One to Choose?

Both offer great growth potential, however, the ultimate choice depends on your long-term goals as a marketer. If you want to build a personal brand, become an influencer. Plus, if you want to focus on brand partnerships, influencer marketing would be the right profession for you.

Content Creator vs. Influencer: FAQs

Here are some frequently asked questions about content marketing vs. influencer marketing.

Do Influencers Create Content?

Yes, influencers create a variety of content, including videos, blog posts, and images. As an influencer, you use your content to build an audience and sell them products.

What is the Difference Between User Generated Content and Influencer?

User-generated content is the content that’s created by a user of a product or the customer. Influencers are marketers or content creators with a niche following on platforms like Instagram and YouTube.

What is the Difference Between Content and Influencer Marketing?

Content marketing is when you use content to attract, engage, and convert your audience. Influencer marketing is when a business promotes its products to an already built following of an influencer.

Conclusion

Content creators and influencer marketers both use the power of content to engage and convert an audience. Influencers usually only have a following on one platform. Content creators work on a range of content types, including blog posts, social media posts, and videos. If you want to build a personal brand, go with influencer marketing. If you’re into different types of content, work as a content creator and diversify your income.

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Are you looking to get into social media marketing? Or, are you weighing your options to decide on the most lucrative and rewarding social media job? Either way, we’ve got you covered. In this blog post, we’ll talk about the best options out there, helping you identify the right path for yourself. Let’s dive in.

Why Social Media Marketing?

Social media platforms host a whopping 5.17 billion social media users worldwide. Smart business owners realize that their target audience is hanging out on these social media platforms, so they invest their resources in connecting with them. Plus, social media platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter provide the tools and features to help business owners reach and convert their audiences. As a result, there’s a huge demand for good social media marketing professionals.

Best Social Media Jobs for a Lucrative Career

Let’s briefly discuss some of the most rewarding and in-demand social media career options.

Social Media Manager

Social media management is one of the most popular roles in the marketing industry. This is because it involves managing a brand’s entire social media presence at a recurring monthly income. As a social media manager, you overlook:

• Content strategy
• Content creation
• Content calendar and publishing
• Analytics
• Graphic design
• And maybe more

Social media managers are usually an all-in-one marketing resource for a brand, taking care of most or all aspects of its social media presence.

Social Media Content Creator

A social media manager may offer virtually everything under the social media marketing umbrella. But, they can’t be the specialist in everything. If a brand wants to hire someone who can help it create powerful content, they have to turn to a content specialist. As a social media content creator, you may be responsible for creating all types of content, including:

• Facebook posts
• Instagram Reels
• Twitter Threads
• LinkedIn posts
• And more

Social Media Content Strategist

A social media content creator may be able to create engaging content, but how does a brand come up with the right topic ideas? Content creators can create great content but if it’s not what the target audience wants, it’d be of no use. As a content media content strategist, you can help brands keep their content calendars populated. Content strategy creation involves researching search engines like Google and competitors. You can also use tools like Buzzsumo to analyze your existing content and work on high-performing topics.

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Community Manager

Developing a content strategy and creating engaging content is important. But, how does a brand make sure their social profiles and pages are actually helping it? By hiring a community manager. The role involves interacting with the prospects and addressing concerns of existing customers.

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Social Media Ads Manager

Effective social media advertising is something that requires understanding the target audience, crafting engaging ad creatives, and analyzing ads for potential improvements. As an ad manager, you help brands maximize their returns by creating, tracking, and optimizing their campaigns.

Graphic Designer

In this fast-paced digital era, most marketing content types are incomplete without eye-catching graphics. Graphic designers help brands create ad creatives, banners, posts, logos, Pinterest Pins, and more. As a graphic designer, you need to have a good grip on:

• Color psychology
• Landing page designs
• Typography
• Contrast
• Alignment
• And more

Freelance Vs In-House Vs Remote Work

As a social media marketer, you don’t have to stick to a specific company or business. An in-house job requires that you go to an office and stick to the 9 – 5 routine. It’s for individuals who prefer a more structured approach to work. However, there are a couple of other options.

Remote Work

Remote work typically involves working with an employer full-time. However, it doesn’t require you to be available in a physical office. As a remote social media marketer, you can work from anywhere you want, as long as you’re fulfilling your jobs.

Freelance Work

Freelancing provides a little more freedom than remote work. As a freelancer, you usually work with clients on a project basis. You have the freedom to work on your own time of the day.  And, you can work anywhere you like.

Where to Get Best Social Media Jobs

There are plenty of platforms where you can list and promote your social media marketing services. LinkedIn is probably the most powerful when it comes to landing long-term clients worldwide. To attract the right clients or jobs, optimize your LinkedIn profile and stay active in relevant groups.

You can also pitch your services to relevant brands and companies with outreach. If you want to get freelance clients, create and optimize your profile on platforms like Fiverr, Upwork, and Legiit.

Best Social Media Jobs: FAQs

Let’s address some frequently asked questions around the topic “Best social media jobs”.

What is the Highest Paid Social Media Job?

Most social media marketing jobs are highly rewarding, but your pay depends on your experience and expertise. Social media management is one of the highest-paid jobs in this industry. On average, the job pays $64,845 /year on average.

Is Social Media Career Worth It?

Social media marketing is one of the most rewarding career options given that you have the required skills. Businesses of all types and sizes use social media to market their products and services, and they’re willing to pay top dollar for the right resource.

How Do I Start a Career in Social Media?

Start by finding a particular niche and get good at it. Share what you learn in relevant social media groups and communities. Build your network and keep pitching your services subtly.

Conclusion

Social media marketing typically provides a high return on investment. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn have a huge active audience size, which makes them a go-to place for most brands. But, marketing has a lot of moving parts and requires expertise and experience. This is why there’s a huge demand for skilled social media marketers. Whether you want to work in-house, remotely, or charge per project, you’ll find a lot of opportunities out there.

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In 2024, an estimated 5.17 billion people use social media. Businesses are trying to connect with their target audience and build a following online, which makes social media management one of the most in-demand skills in this digital world. The job involves managing brands’ social media accounts and helping them achieve their marketing goals cost-effectively.

However, how to become a social media manager without a degree? Thankfully, gone are the days when you need a degree to even apply for a position. Today, brands and companies look at other factors before deciding if they want to work with you. In this guide, we’ll tell you how you can get a social media management job without having a relevant degree, or any degree at all. Let’s dive in.

What is Social Media Management?

To help other businesses with social media management, you first need to know the ins and outs of this role. From a zoomed-out perspective, it involves overseeing a business’s social media presence. The tasks you handle include content creation, community management, tracking, strategy development, and maybe more.

Traditional Education Vs Practical Experience

A degree in communications, marketing, or any related field can help you understand the concepts of social media management, but it’s not necessary. Many social media marketers start with no degree and have successful careers.

A prominent benefit of traditional education is that it provides you with foundational knowledge like marketing principles, communication techniques, and strategy development. However, social media marketing is a dynamic industry, and traditional education is mostly unable to keep up with the trends. As a result, it doesn’t fully equip you with all the necessary knowledge and skills.

Practical experience, on the other hand, gives you the skills and knowledge you need to stay relevant and make yourself valuable in this ever-evolving landscape. Thankfully, getting relevant practice experience is easier than ever; you can get it through free or paid internships, freelance projects, and even volunteer work.

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Online Courses and Certifications

You don’t need a traditional degree to learn the basics of social media marketing. Every piece of information you need to start this career is available online. Explore platforms like HubSpot, Udemy, and Skillshare for relevant courses and certifications. In addition to helping you build a strong foundation, certifications from reputable organizations and instructors can help you build your credibility as a service provider.

Skills Required for Social Media Management

You don’t have to be perfect at everything to get started in this industry. Even if you don’t have the right skills at the moment, you can learn them over time. Here are the most important skills you need to master to become a successful social media manager.

Creativity and Content Creation

Social media managers need creativity to come up with the type of content that targets the right people, grabs attention, engages prospects, and derives actions. Audience retention requires compelling copy and eye-catching visuals, which require a creative mind.

Analytical Skills

Being able to analyze the data and measure the performance of a social media marketing campaign are important aspects of social media management. With analytical skills, you’re able to effectively craft growth strategies to achieve a brand’s ROI goals.

Communication

A social media manager needs to keep other team members in the loop and manage a community of potential and existing customers. Both of these require effective communication skills. The good thing is that with practice, you can develop your communication skills.

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How to Get a Social Media Management Job Without a Degree

Create a Solid Online Presence

Start by creating your online presence on the most relevant social media platforms. Optimize your profiles with the right keywords and position yourself as an expert in a particular niche or platform. For instance, you may want to target clients who are looking to hire Facebook ads managers.

Build Your Portfolio

To get your first job, you can offer your services for free or at an attractive price. As you work on more projects, add your experiences in a dedicated folder or file. This will be your portfolio that you can show to potential clients later on.

Network

Networking is inarguably one of the most powerful ways to get new clients. Join social media groups within your industry. Groups where your target clients are most probably hanging out. Interact with other’s content and publish your own to help your credibility as a service provider.

Create a Job Search Strategy

Having your own portfolio website and a traffic strategy is the fastest way to land high-paying social media management jobs. But, if you don’t want to create a website yet, join a couple of freelance platforms and create your profile. Reach out to potential buyers to maximize your chances of getting a long-term job.

How to Become a Social Media Manager Without a Degree: FAQs

Let’s address some frequently asked questions about becoming a social media manager without a degree.

Do You Need a Degree to be a Social Media Manager?

You do no need a degree to be a social media manager. In fact, many successful social media marketers don’t have a traditional degree. You can learn the basics on platforms like YouTube and Udemy and start offering your services.

What Qualifications Do You Need to be a Social Media Manager?

You don’t need an official qualification to be a social media manager. However, this also depends on the company you intend to work in. Some hiring managers require that you have a degree in a relevant subject.

How Do I Become a Social Media Manager as a Beginner?

To get your foot in the door, start learning the basics on YouTube and course websites. Establish your social media presence and join social media groups for networking and attracting clients.

Conclusion

A successful social media manager practices creativity, has good analytical skills, and communicates effectively. Their technical skills include persuasive writing, knowing the platforms they work on, and creating eye-catching designs, among other things. Thankfully, a professional degree may help you with some of the skills, you can learn all that without it.

Start by learning about your target industry online and get social media marketing certifications from reputable platforms. Next, establish a solid online presence and build your portfolio over time. Lastly, keep using networking to attract long-term opportunities.

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Social media platforms connect people all around the world. Businesses use these social media platforms to connect with their target audience. But, since social media marketing has a lot of moving parts, they outsource it to professionals.

A social media moderator is a marketing professional who helps brands manage and grow their social media audience. If you’re considering becoming a social media moderator, this guide is for you. We’ll cover everything from gaining the right skills to getting your first job. Let’s dive in.

How to Become a Social Media Moderator

Here’s a step-by-step guide to becoming a social media moderator.

Understanding the Role

Start by understanding what tasks you’ll be responsible for as a social media moderator. Social media moderators are generally responsible for moderating the content and/or the community of a brand. For instance, you may be responsible for checking a post submission before publishing it on a brand’s Facebook page. Another responsibility is to constantly check comments and delete/remove the ones that don’t follow the guidelines. In short, the role involves “moderating” content and users.

Education and Qualifications

There are no strict education or qualifications requirements to become a community moderator. Brands and businesses mostly look at your expertise and experience and whether or not you can help them grow on social media. However, having a relevant degree or certification can help you stand out among beginners who don’t have any qualifications.

Gaining Necessary Skills

Here are the skills you need to get good at to become a successful moderator.

Communication

Probably the most important skill you need to polish is communication. As a moderator, you need to interact with followers and customers. The role also involves effectively addressing any concerns and conflicts within the community.

Technical Skills

As a moderator, you’ll have to understand how different social platforms work and effectively use the tools provided by them for marketing.

Problem-Solving

Managing an online community doesn’t come without conflicts. Every now and then, you may need to resolve conflicts of varying natures. Having problem-solving skills will help you navigate these conflicts effectively. If you don’t, the reputation of the brand you work with can get hurt.

Refining these important skills will not only help you stand out among other candidates, but they’ll also let you excel faster as a community moderator.

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Job Search and Networking

Getting your first job as a community or social media moderator can be a tough ask. There are a lot of potential candidates trying to get noticed for roles like these. Your first step should be to spice up your resume by adding your skills, relevant qualifications, and past experiences.

Create your portfolio and showcase your skills and experiences. This could be your own social media page or community. As you grow in experience, your portfolio becomes bigger.

Once you have a professional resume, write a generic cover letter targeting recruiting managers. Whenever you see a new job posting, customize the cover letter to that job.

If you want to get a freelance or remote social media moderator role, join freelance platforms, create an optimized profile, and start hunting for clients. Also, create a professional profile on job boards like Indeed and LinkedIn.

Probably the most effective way to attract clients and recruiters is by networking and publishing content related to social media marketing regularly. The goal is to connect with other professionals and business owners and showcase your expertise.

Join different social media groups and communities related to social media marketing and add insightful content. Publish content on these communities and position yourself as an authority on the topic. You’ll soon start attracting clients organically. In addition, you can also find decision-makers on LinkedIn by using the platform’s advanced search feature. For instance, you can get in touch with a CEO of a particular company and send them an outreach message.

Getting Experience

Probably the biggest hurdle in the way of getting your first social media moderator job is the lack of relevant experience. After all, most recruiters and clients want to make sure you can actually help them. And, the best way to do that is by looking at your past work experience. Thankfully, there are a few ways to get some experience.

Internship

An internship can provide you with a professional environment. You get to learn the skills and knowledge needed to become a professional social media moderator. Although you’re not paid as much, the growth potential in an internship is quite good. Find internships in your industry and work for a few months to understand the role and strengthen your resume.

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Volunteer Work

Another way to add some experience to your resume is by volunteering for a non-profit organization. Work with a non-profit solely to help them grow their cause on social media with your moderation skills. You’ll be able to strengthen your experience section of the resume automatically.

Build Your Social Presence

Building your own social media accounts and pages is also an experience you can showcase on your resume. Just make sure you have some concrete results to show to potential clients.

How to Become a Social Media Moderator: FAQs

Here are some frequently asked questions about becoming a social media moderator.

Do You Need a Degree to Become a Social Media Moderator?

No, you do not need a degree to become a social media moderator. Although a relevant degree may help you stand out among candidates without any experience. Your skill, experience, and portfolio are the assets that can get you a social media moderator role.

What Skills Are Important for a Social Media Moderator?

A social media moderator needs to have effective communication, conflict management, problem-solving, and some technical skills.

How Do I Become a Social Media Moderator Without Experience?

You can get an internship as a social media moderator. Or, you can work with a non-profit organization just for the sake of getting some experience. Learning the skill and showcasing it to potential clients through networking is an effective way to land your first job without experience.

Conclusion

A social media moderator is a marketing specialist who moderates social media communities. They’re responsible to keep the community striving towards its goals by interacting with members and resolving conflicts. To become a social media moderator, you don’t need a degree or even a certification. All you need is the right set of skills, which are good communication, problem-solving, and an understanding of how social platforms work. To build some experience, you can offer your services at a lower price or work with an organization as an intern.

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Crafting a result-oriented social media strategy requires skill, creative thinking, and experience, among other skills. This is why a social media strategist is in high demand. The job involves creating, evaluating, and tweaking social media content to help a brand achieve its marketing goals cost-effectively. In this blog post, we’ll tell you how to become a social media strategist. By the end, you’ll have a step-by-step plan to start your career on the right foot. Let’s dive in. 

Who is a Social Media Strategist

A social media strategist helps brands start and grow their social media accounts by creating, editing, and publishing content. Their major job is to come up with effective growth and content strategies, helping the brand reach its goals cost-effectively. They don’t only strategize and create content but also monitor its performance and make tweaks to their strategy accordingly. 

There are essentially two kinds of social media strategists. Some work as freelancers and offer their services to clients all over the world. The price of their services depends on the experience and skills of the strategist. The second type of social media strategist works in-house for companies or agencies and gets a monthly paycheck. 

What Does a Social Media Strategist Do

A social media strategist maintains a brand’s presence on social media. The role involves coming up with a content strategy that aligns with the brand’s marketing goals and values. Strategists may also create, publish, and analyze the content. In most of the cases, this is the responsibility of the social media content creator. Typically, a strategist handles the following aspects of social media marketing:

• Strategizing and executing social media campaigns 
• Establish effective communication channels with relevant teams 
• Developing content strategies for different platforms
• Identifying and measuring key performance indicators
• Keeping in touch with online trends
• Documenting wins and losses
• And maybe more

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How to Become a Social Media Strategist

Here’s a step-by-step guide to becoming a social media strategist. 

Build Your Foundations 

Some employers require a professional degree in a relevant subject such as marketing, communications, and PR. However, this is not the case when you’re pursuing this career from a freelance perspective. Most clients will just look at your skills, portfolio, and experience before hiring you for a project. Nevertheless, it’s always a plus to have a relevant degree from a reputable organization at your back. Alternatively, you can enroll in online courses and learn all the basics on your own. You can spice up your CV by taking certifications from reputable organizations like HubSpot and Google. 

Work as an Intern

More than 66.4% of interns land a full-time job after the completion of their internship. Besides, you’re unlikely to land a full-time job with a reliable brand or company with zero experience. For exposure and experience, you can work as an intern, remotely or in-house. Working as an intern allows you to build your network, which increases your chances of getting a full-time offer. 

Build Your Portfolio

Your portfolio is essentially a combination of your projects and experiences. A company considering you for the role will likely ask for your portfolio before moving forward with the hiring process. What you can do is document every little success and content piece in a file. Alternatively, you can add all your details to your website. Make it easy for a potential employer or client to check your portfolio by adding a link to it in your CV, cover letter, social media, or any relevant place.

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Network

A powerful way to find clients and employers for a social media strategist position is by networking in niche communities. Join Facebook and LinkedIn groups and participate in the conversations. Showcase your talent, skill, and experience with value posts and insightful comments. You can also join job boards and freelance platforms to increase your chances of getting hired. 

Skills Needed to Be a Social Media Strategist

Familiarity with Social Platforms

Every social media platform will be different in terms of the audience, advertising tools, content type, and relevance to your business. Understanding the type of content that performs best on a platform helps you drive engagement and conversions for brands. 

Client Management

When you’re working as a freelance social media strategist, you need to constantly be in touch with clients and make sure they’re satisfied with their investments. Effective communication skills come in handy here. Keeping your tech team in the loop and maintaining a clear communication channel is a skill you need in an in-house job. 

Graphic Design

Social media strategists work with graphic designers to create eye-catching and engaging designs for the target audience. Understanding graphic design helps you keep everything in line with the brand’s colors and theme. 

Copywriting

The ability to write good copy helps social media strategists hook, engage, and convert the audience. For instance, they can use storytelling to create stroll-stoping Facebook ads.

Related: How to Become a Freelance Social Media Manager 

How to Become a Social Media Strategist: FAQs

Let’s address some frequently asked questions about becoming a social media strategist. 

What Do You Need to Become a Social Media Strategist?

Most social media strategist jobs require a relevant degree and some experience. For freelance jobs, you just have to showcase your ability to help a potential client grow on social media. 

What is the Job of a Social Media Strategist?

A social media strategist is responsible for creating and executing social media marketing strategies. They create, publish, and manage content on different social platforms. 

What is the Difference Between a Social Media Strategist and a Social Media Manager?

Social media managers take care of day-to-day marketing tasks, like responding to customer queries and making sure they’re satisfied. Social media strategists, on the other hand, have a more creative job of creating and executing growth strategies. 

Conclusion

To become a social media strategist, all you need is a relevant degree, some experience, and the right skills. Getting a freelance or remote job isn’t as tricky. The barrier to entry is lower as clients mostly look at your skill level, portfolio, and communication skills before hiring. 

Every business wants to attract social media traffic to its products or services. But, everyone can’t afford to execute social media marketing strategies on their own. The process is just too time-consuming. 

Instead, small businesses hire someone who can effectively manage day-to-day marketing tasks and help them grow. As a freelance social media manager, you work remotely for the brand that hires you. In this guide, we’ll tell you how to become a freelance social media manager. Let’s dive in. 

What Does a Social Media Manager Do

If you’re thinking of becoming a social media manager, it’s crucial to understand what your responsibilities will be. The job requires a variety of tasks from you since you’ll be managing a brand’s social media presence. It may include one or more of the following:

• Creating a social media marketing strategy
• Writing content
• Handling customer queries
• Managing ads
• Analyze the performance
• Stay on top of trends
• And more

When you’re a freelance social media manager, you also need to manage client acquisition and communication. As you can see, you need a handful of skills if you want to be an effective social media manager. Let’s break each skill down a little. 

Skills Required to Be a Freelance Social Media Manager

Communication 

Communication is one of the most important skills you need as a social media marketer and a freelancer. You’ll need good communication skills to reach out and close new clients. Plus, as a social media manager, you’ll be required to understand your audience and provide satisfactory answers. 

Copywriting

From writing ads to engaging with prospects, copywriting is everywhere in social media marketing. You’ll have to write a lot of persuasive content to attract, engage, and convert your client’s audience. 

Creativity 

Sometimes, your client won’t offer a lot of help with developing a strategy. You may even have to create ad creatives for them from scratch. To manage all that effectively, you will need to be creative. 

Graphic Design Knowledge

As mentioned above, you may have to create ad graphics and social media posts without the client’s help. You don’t need to be a graphic design expert though. Tools like Canva have ready-made templates you can reuse as your own. Some graphic design sense is all you need to pick engaging graphics. 

Client Acquisition and Management

Freelance social media managers have to hunt for clients and manage their communication effectively. One of the major reasons why many aspiring freelancers quit is because they find client acquisition too hard. 

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How to Become a Freelance Social Media Manager

 

Take Social Media Marketing Courses

Start by taking some social media marketing courses from reputable organizations. There are thousands of courses to learn from. You just need to understand the basics and learn the ins and outs of the platforms you want to work on. For instance, you can start by learning Facebook ads management and expand your knowledge later to other platforms.

Pick Your Platform/s

Before you can start reaching out to potential clients, it’s important to understand which platforms you want to focus on. Defining a platform helps you get your first client relatively easily. Your target platform will also depend on the target audience of your potential client. For instance, if you want to work with B2B companies, LinkedIn would be the perfect place for client hunting. 

Learn to Create Social Media Strategies

As a freelance social media manager, you’ll mostly need to identify the best path for your client. When it comes to spending their marketing budget, you may have to take the driving seat. 

Identify Your Target Clients

One of the best things about freelance jobs is that you get to choose who you work with. Identifying your target clients also makes your reach out much more effective. You’ll know their pain points or desires, which makes it easy for you to grab their attention. 

Pick Your Services

There are plenty of services you can offer as a social media manager, but there’s a limit to how much you can manage effectively. Identify your strengths and stick with them. For instance, if you’re good at strategy building, offer ad management services. If you can write good copy, offer copywriting services. 

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Set Your Prices

At first, you might have to keep your prices a bit low to get your foot in the door. The social media marketing industry is overcrowded, so you will have to do something unique to stand out and get noticed. As you get more experience, you can start charging more. Your charges will, however, depend on several other factors, including your location, platforms, and services. 

Finding Your First Client

At this point, you should have a good understanding of social media marketing. So, why not use it to get your first freelance client? Start by networking on social platforms where your target client hangs out. Position yourself as someone who can help others reach their marketing goals. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Let’s answer some frequently asked questions about becoming a freelance social media manager. 

How Do I Start Freelance Social Media Management?

Start by taking some courses on reputable platforms like Google Digital Garage and Hubspot Academy. Implement what you learn on your own social profiles to get clients. Learn communication and use networking to land clients consistently. 

How Much Can I Make as a Freelance Social Media Manager?

Your earnings as a freelance social media manager depend on your services, platforms, and types of clients. According to ZipRecruiter, the average salary of a freelance social media marketing manager is $64,845 per year. 

How Do I Pitch Myself as a Freelance Social Media Manager?

Start by introducing yourself and your social media marketing expertise. Tell them how investing in your services will help them grow on social media and why you’re the right fit for the task. 

Related: Types of Social Media Jobs

Conclusion

This was all about how to become a freelance social media manager. To be a successful social media manager, you need a range of skills, including copywriting, understanding of graphic design, strategy building, analyzing the data, and more. 

Therefore, you should start by taking a detailed course on the subject. Then, narrow your expertise down to a certain area, for instance, Facebook ads. Start networking on social platforms your target clients are spending time on. Offer your services at a competitive rate in the beginning to get your first client as soon as possible.