How to Hire Your Social Media Strategist
In this article, you'll learn...
- What traits to look for in your next social media strategist
- Four tips to keep in mind when sifting through resumes
Though social media is now a legitimate part of the marketing mix, it's not always readily apparent who should lead a company's social marketing efforts. Most times, a social-media-savvy employee ends up being the "corporate social strategist," more or less by default.
But is that the best way to fill such an important role in your organization? That is, when choosing someone to lead the charge on the social media front, would you want someone who is, merely by dint of personal inclination, "good at social media"? Or would you prefer someone who can use social media to achieve business goals?
I would assume that you'd want the latter. The next question, then, is this: How do you ensure that you are picking the right person to get the job done?
In a recent MarketingProfs online seminar, "How to be a Social Media Strategist, Not the Social Help Desk," analyst Jeremiah Owyang answered that question by offering five suggestions.
1. Hire a business program manager, not a ninja, guru, or maven
Don't concentrate on the hotshots who are wrapped up in their own sense of grandeur. Instead, when hiring a strategist, "first focus on somebody who actually understands business problems, how to deploy resources, and how to measure their effectiveness,” Owyang suggests.
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Comments
This article was excellent, I felt like it was speaking right to me. People aspiring for such a position should definitely read this, there are great tips you can take away that can help you improve your skills as a social media strategist.
Sick Article.
And, don't hire someone with only a few years of experience... you've probably seen those resumes riddled with social media acronyms and the candidate seems young, energetic and hip... while these folks may be able to "do" social media and participate... they still don't have the experience to translate social media into value, strategy and measurable results. You need an experienced marketer for this - who can then instruct the young social media savvy folks on how to execute the plan. More at my blog www.dansoschin.com...
I agree wholeheartedly withthis article and with Dan. Indeed, social media is only a tactic, a component of a larger communications strategy. Tweets, blogs, Facebook postings are useless unless they convey a strategic message that is measurable for calculating return on objections, return on investment. Social Media is a two prong approach; quality content and appropriate, targeted placement/execution. Missing either of these prongs and your “social media program” will fail.
Whoops! Regarding my above comment. That's return on objectives...
I don't know, I kind of like the phrase "return on objections"... I've submitted a number of proposals over the years that have been rejected (and I still went ahead anyway)... I suppose the results were the return on objections. :P
Good tips. I"d also add "try to find a strategist with real world business experience." Few of the social media consultants have ever run social media programs inside companies, so it's hard for them to really understand many of the organizational, political, budget and other issues. I ran into this when I was managing programs for Fortune 500 tech co's--marketing consultants who did a great song and dance but didn't understand my issues at the deeper level I needed, so I had to spend too much time educating them.
This is a fabulous article! One that really gets to the core elements of a successful mindset.
I also agree with Mark about the importance of a successful business background. A great place to provide these details is with an optimized Linkedin Profile.
I really love this site:-)