Social Media is one of the new professionals that emerged with digitalization, mainly with the existence of social networks.
These professionals assume the role of communicators on the most diverse platforms and can work in agencies, within a company or autonomously.
Although people with different backgrounds, such as advertising, marketing and design, work in this area, there is no requirement for a higher education course to work in Social Media. Stay tuned for the following tips to start in this area.
1 – List Your Strengths
There are different sub areas within the scope of Social Media: research of stories, creation of text, design of posts, management of publications, response to comments and editorial planning. Each of these subareas can be the responsibility of a specific professional. Still, the most common thing is that, especially in the beginning, all of them are performed by a single person.
If this is your case, be clear about your specialties. For example, you may be comfortable creating ideas and written material but need help to create art. At that moment, you can offer your work following a specialty or even study to improve the design part.
None of the paths is right or wrong, but it is necessary to be clear from the beginning which points you need to improve to evolve in this profession.
2 – Know The Platforms
The various existing social networks have their particularities, and it is necessary to know them deeply. According to surveys, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram are currently the most used social networks. Although the content may be the same, there may be a wide variation in the format that this content will be passed on to the audience.
For example, it is impossible on Instagram to make posts with clickable links, unlike Facebook, which is essential to consider when creating a post.
In addition to their specificities in format, platforms can attract different audiences. It is also essential to be clear which is the preferred social network of each public to guide your client as to which one deserves the investment.
3 – Learn About Metrics
It is essential to understand and analyze the metrics of each social network to assess whether publications are performing as expected. Does it make a difference to the strategy if there are more likes than shares? Which metric is better to analyze, considering which objective? Can I expect the same performance on all networks?
In addition, it is interesting to know some specific metrics from the marketing world so that you can communicate with your client clearly and understand the progress of the strategy as a whole. What was the return on investment for this publication? What was the conversion rate for this post?
Seek to deeply understand these questions and ask yourself new ones your client may question.
4 – Create A Portfolio
It’s hard to start from scratch in any area. Usually, for you to be hired, it is customary for your previous work to be analyzed. If you still need a portfolio of actual services provided, do personal projects that can serve as an example and demonstrate your skills. You can host these projects on sites like Behance, or you can even create a professional profile on your favorite social network, which in addition to being a great portfolio, also helps you practice these concepts and improve faster.
There is yet another option for you to start creating your portfolio: volunteer work. Many startups and non-profit institutions have exciting causes but need more money to hire a social media professional. Talk to some of these organizations and say that you are willing to help for free if you can put the work done in your portfolio for x period.
Following these tips, you can start freelancing, and if you like the area, you can look for jobs in companies or agencies. It’s a great way to get tested and understand if this is what you’re looking for as a career.