How to Become a Freelance Social Media Manager
If you want to know how to become a freelance social media manager, you’ve come to the right place. We’ll give you guides, tips, and tricks to help you start your freelance journey as a social media manager.
Social media marketing and management are some of the most in-demand jobs to date. Freelancer.com, an online job marketplace giant, places hundreds of job postings. And that is just one site. Similarly, hundreds, if not thousands, of social media marketers, managers, and content writers are posting their availability. But don’t be intimidated, and don’t lose sight of your goal. Even if the competition is high, there are ways to stand out and get the job.
Social Media: An Overview
Social media has become one of the most powerful platforms man has ever invented. It has bridged worlds, connecting people and creating a network of different communities with varied interests virtually. While the main purpose of social media is to provide an avenue for people to keep in touch, it has evolved into something bigger. Now, it serves as an e-commerce platform, a sales and marketing strategy, a customer service tool, and even an instrument for creating polls and surveys.
Social media has opened up a door of limitless information-sharing, making it a good tool for data collection and market research. Opinions and facts are communicated to an international audience through articles, short posts, photos, and videos.
These platforms have changed how people communicate drastically. Reaching out and connecting has become more convenient. Through messaging and audio and video calls, we can simultaneously interact with people from all over the world, not to mention it will not cost you a dime. Social media has become so much a part of people’s lives that they rely on these platforms for almost everything: news, entertainment, business transactions, and more!
Tips on How to Become a Freelance Social Media Manager
As a social media manager, you have to understand and know how to maximize these platforms to your client’s advantage. You can see how people of different demographics perceive a product, brand, or service through different posts and comments. Trends from these platforms typically dictate fashion, movement, and even political ideologies. And this is how you can ensure a powerful social media campaign and management for your client.
Duties of a Social Media Manager
In learning how to become a freelance social media manager, you must first know your duties and responsibilities as one. As a social media manager, your primary role is to provide an efficient and sound online presence for your client.
1. Develop a social media campaign
A social media campaign is a strategy where you use social media to achieve your client’s goals. The most common campaign is introducing a brand or product to the market. You may be hired to ensure that a new product or product line is available to the market. When introducing a new product, you may do some teasers, explainer videos, and pricing promotions.
Another campaign is for generating brand loyalty. For this, the product is already available in the market, and your job is to make sure that customers continue to patronize the product. You have to make the product relevant and in demand.
You may also be tasked to develop a campaign to increase sales. This involves both creativity and market research to see how you can draw more customers.
2. Run and oversee the campaign
Once a campaign is already in place, your next task is to ensure the smooth and uninterrupted implementation of the plan. You will be in charge of publishing and posting content, managing social media interactions, and generating reports through social media analytics.
Treat this task as if you are managing your own social media page. Do not post hurriedly; know the right time to post and the right platform to use. Monitor the pages consistently and be ready to troubleshoot and address any errors.
3. Producing Content
More than just managing the campaign, you are also in charge of producing the content. For this part, you have to bring your thinking hat out of the box because you need all the creativity you can get. To get your target market’s attention, you have to make the page exciting. Do not focus mainly on copywriting. Remember, you can still get the message across using visuals like photos and videos. Publish demo reels to spark interest. Post original and captivating pictures. You can even create gifs!
4. Creating Good Customer Experience
As a social media manager, you are tasked to make sure interactions with clients are done flawlessly. You are to monitor comments on posts (and reply if needed), respond to messages, and even hold polls and surveys. Make sure that when providing responses, you are aligned with the values and visions of your client. If you are unsure how to handle a situation, discuss it with your client.
Skills and Tricks
It is not enough that you simply know how to become a freelance social media manager. You must know how to become an EXCELLENT social media manager. Here are some skills (and tricks) you must have to stand out from the rest:
• Mastery and Expertise
First things first, know the different social media platforms and their strengths and weaknesses. Match the brand, product, and campaign with the right social media platform. There are different types of social media platforms, and you must master the interface and markets of each. For instance, Instagram is an excellent photo-sharing tool, while TikTok is for videos. Twitter has limited character spaces, while Facebook gives you more room for longer posts. Master the best specifications for the content you are posting for these platforms.
Check for available online mastery courses for these platforms, especially if you do not have time to explore and learn the features yourself. You might even learn a few hidden tricks during these courses. Remember, as a freelancer, you are running a business. So the more you master your craft, the more you have a chance of landing clients and projects.
• Communication Skills
Social media management is basically anchored on communication. The content you produce will be based on the message your client wants to relay to the public. Replies must be clear, polite, and professional. The voice or tone you use will have an impact on your audience.
Remember, social media reaches a global audience. So you have to know how to manipulate your content to cater to an international market. Be sensitive and careful about cultural differences, watch your word choices, and check even the images you will post. Some symbols or color schemes may be offensive to others.
Everything will boil down to how well you communicate.
• Use Your Tools
If you are a social media manager, it follows that you are a techie person. So, make use of other tools and platforms that can help you run your business efficiently. Keep in mind that many online business solutions are at your disposal. There are online job marketplaces to market and sell your business, project management software for progress tracking, online proposal and invoice generators, and accounting and bookkeeping platforms to help you with your finances.
Conclusion
Becoming a social media manager needs a lot of work if you want to stand out. It is important that you master social media platforms and develop excellent communication skills so you can provide expert service to clients. Now that you know how to become a freelance social media manager and understand the skills required for you to become good at your work, you can go and start your freelance business confidently.
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