Your Social Media Sherpa

We heard it from two leading media experts at Social Media Week in NY (one representing Time Inc. and the other Sandow Media) and then we heard it again today from a beauty product developer overseas. She hired an intern to build her key platforms but then . . .nothing. No engagement, no excitement, nada.  You can’t expect to hire a college grad and get social media satisfaction. It doesn’t matter if they’ve been on Facebook since they’ve been 15, that doesn’t make them savvy.

Your social media manager plays a very important role in your company.  They are the voice of your brand and are speaking with many out there in internet land, hopefully new and existing customers and writers that may review your products.  Not only should they have years of experience within your industry, they should also be seasoned PR professionals who understand how to communicate with the media and directly with your customers. They should know the ins and outs of your business like you do.  Their tools of the trade might include helpful stuff like –

• using Wufoo to survey customers
• Podio for project management
• Tracckr to find the people who matter most
• Twiangulate to strengthen connections
• Tweet Deck for scheduling promotions on Twitter
• Simply Measured  to help them measure social media metrics
• Sysomos to listen and engage on social platforms
• Facebook Insights to connect with fans
• Screenr pro to answer customer questions
• Zen Desk to manage customer service inquiries

A creative mind also comes in handy, especially when developing integrated campaigns to help boost your brand buzz.

So what should your Social Media Management director, team or agency be able to do?

• Grow and maintain social media communities that support your market.
• Develop and publish engaging copy/visuals/content to meet your objectives.
• Execute social media strategies with creative campaigns.
• Proactively monitor and respond to questions and comments from community members and potential consumers in a timely manner.
• Utilize reporting tools to deliver weekly analytics reports.
• Develop strategies to increase brand mentions and engagement.
• Exhibit solid understanding of your general business strategy, industry issues, products and services offered, key customers and competitors in the marketplace.
• Manage workload, meet deadlines, and pay attention to details.
• Demonstrate the ability to multi-task across multiple projects.