For a lot of business people, the question of whether or not they should delegate their online marketing efforts to a social media marketing expert is a given:
- Focusing on marketing will pull them away from executing their core work
- They are not inherently good at marketing
- They don’t have the time to acquire new divergent skills
A lot of them are hesitant to do it again because they once hired a social media manager who promised the sun and moon but burned them.
The problem is that being a relatively new industry in Kenya. With literally zero regulation governing it, many disreputable people proudly display the title “Social Media Marketing Guru” on their LinkedIn profiles that can barely differentiate between Last Interaction Attribution and Linear Attribution models.
In this article, you will learn a few red flags that all business people and marketing managers should look out for as well as some pitfalls they should avoid when hiring a social media manager:
1. Going Too Cheap
An adage says, “buy cheap, buy twice.” This invariably happens when you hire someone because they are far cheaper than the rest.
In such moments, the hirer feels lucky to get such a good deal when in a real sense, they will receive very shoddy services. When finding a social media manager, be keen not to fall into such traps.
In most cases, people who offer cheap services consistently undervalue the importance of their work. Do you want to entrust such a person with your business?
2. Lingering on Feedback, Edits, and Changes
One of the main reasons you outsource your social media manager is that you want someone who can save you time for other activities. You also want to get better results soon.
However, you have the wrong employee if you are constantly required to make significant changes to their work and edit documents, blogs, tweets, and captions before posting.
It gets worse when you are the one re-doing everything.
The critical takeaway is finding someone who has enough expertise in managing social media accounts. They should be able to optimize the content on their own until it sounds and feels like you.
You can make a few tweaks here and there within your schedule when you have some time, but that can be wholly delegated when you get a reliable manager.
3. Laziness
Consistency and frequency are critical factors when hiring your social media manager. Having someone ready to commit most of their time to work online would be best.
Given the noise level on social media, your online community needs to receive frequent updates. They should be able to post content daily and respond to comments and DMs promptly.
Before hiring an online media manager:
- Agree on a calendar.
- Let them know how often they must post daily while keeping their budget in mind.
- Avoid anybody that is not ready to dedicate enough time to your social media platforms.
4. Hiring Someone Who Neglects Your Values
In the craft of modern communications, a brand’s communication is an embodiment of its values.
If your social media manager doesn’t understand your values, they cannot execute their role effectively.
Core values reflect what your business is all about, so it’s crucial to hire someone ready to keep them.
It is even better to hire someone who shares the same values as yours.
5. Rigidity in Methodology and Practices
If the only tool in your toolbelt is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail.
A social media manager should be able to adapt to things quickly; this is where their superpower lies.
They should be keen listeners and strongly understand common social media knowledge. For instance, an excellent social media manager needs to be aware of the various platforms that aggregate information, such as Twitter, Facebook, Google News, etc.
They must also develop a norm of learning new information daily. Social media keeps changing, and it has so many layers and sublayers of information that the manager should know to navigate your brand effectively through the information superhighway..
Your brand will be severely hit if your manager is not constantly learning.
Your brand will suffer even more if your social media manager only uses the marketing strategies they learned in school and never deviates from them. They have only one tool in their toolbelt, and as the saying goes, if the only tool in your toolbelt is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail.
This is why you need to hire someone who has a genuine thirst for information—one who is ready to adapt to new environments for the good of your online community.
6. A Lack of Appreciation for Storytelling
Social media is not just about posting content and replying to tweets. At its heart, high-engagement social media content is driven by stories.
By hiring a manager who understands storytelling, they can use social media as an avenue to help you reach your organization’s strategic objectives. Using relatable and high VRIN score content will enable you to bond with your audience, prospects, and customers.
Regardless of your industry, every business stands to reap benefits from brand storytelling.
7. Hiring Someone with Low EQ
People skills are crucial in a social media manager. After all, half the job involves interpersonal interaction.
Just because you interact with people online and not physically doesn’t mean you shouldn’t put their needs first.
It is best to hire a social media manager who understands that you are on social media because you want to connect with your audience. Having great people skills can go a long way in bringing more followers.
Managing social media is like working with a group of people you can’t see or hear. So, high and frequent engagement is vital.
It would help if you didn’t go for a social media manager who finds it hard to maintain conversations with customers. They should be able to empathize with your customers at their point of need.
8. Hiring Someone Who Doesn’t Know How to Handle Negative Feedback
Beyond fulfilling an organization’s PR function, Social media is also an extension of its Customer Service function.
A lot of consumers will often rush to social media to express their displeasure with an organization.
It is the social media manager’s duty to handle these complaints with diplomacy and strive to get to the bottom of an issue. Resolution time varies depending on the issue, and they should be able to bridge the gap between meeting clients’ expectations and what the organization can reasonably deliver.
Lest we forget, some of the negative feedback you receive online will, from time to time be factual.
And as we are often reminded, many unhappy people are on social media.
Navigating this added layer of negativity conveyed through toxic behaviour, and negative comments are crucial for a social media manager.
If your social media manager cannot handle negative feedback tactfully and respectfully, avoid hiring them, or they will drag your name to the gutter.
Final Thoughts
Remember, your social media manager is your organisation’s voice online.
Hiring a social media manager is a perfect solution to growing your brand awareness while still enabling you to focus on what you’re good at.
If you’re looking for professional help with managing and growing your social media presence, book a call with one of our social media marketing consultants, and we’ll have you dominating your industry within months.