As seen with all other areas of business, social media has gone mainstream. People expect professionals to use it as part of their job function. If you’re in marketing or advertising, your responsibility can be limited to creating content, engaging users in conversations, and responding to comments and messages.
But if you’re looking to take it further, add some SM management to your toolbox, then this is the article for you!
By adding social media management (SMM) into your service offering, you could potentially earn extra income. Most small businesses don’t have someone who does only that, so offering it as a separate service is a way to make some money while helping others develop theirs.
That being said, most people aren’t aware of how to find clients for social media management, even though it’s an ever-growing field.
As we mentioned before, being able to show off how you use social media to promote services or products is a great way to gain clients. But what kind of services do you offer?
Running a social media management firm means helping business owners grow their online presence through things like posting content, responding to comments, engaging in conversations, and creating an audience that likes and trusts them.
As with any type of marketing, there are ways to tap into new opportunities and sources of revenue. One of the best strategies to find new clients is by establishing yourself as an expert in your field.
By offering your professional skills to other businesses, you’ll be providing a service while also generating some income. People will pay to have someone else manage and oversee their accounts!
In this article, you’ll learn about eight easy ways to gather information about potential services and positions.
Now that you have determined what kind of social media management you want to do, it’s time to think about how to find your first clients.
Most people start their career as an assistant or administrative staff member before moving up the ladder into more responsible positions. You can be one of those people!
You will need to spend time working with others so you should prepare yourself by making a list of all the places you would like to work.
This includes meeting with potential employers directly, attending events hosted by other businesses, reading business books, listening to podcasts, and looking at job listings – just to name a few.
By being prepared, you will know what opportunities are available to you and what strategies you have to pursue. It also helps if you are not shy and love talking to new people!
Finding employment is a long process but doing these things will definitely help you get there faster.
Now that you have identified your service areas, it is time to determine what types of clients you will target for social media management services. You can pick any type of business or individual that fits your profile as a professional social media manager!
As with anything else, there are different levels of social media managers out there. Some may only do very small businesses while others focus mostly on large corporations. There are also people who just focus on certain areas such as marketing or advertising which is great if you already have those skills!
Whatever level they are at, most individuals looking for help in managing their social media accounts want someone they can trust. They want to know that person will handle their account professionally and won’t put too much pressure on them to achieve results.
That is why being honest about your abilities and offering limited services is the best way to go about things.
Being present in the social media space is an excellent way to get exposure and connect with potential clients. By joining various networking groups, you can meet professionals in your field or people looking to develop their online presence.
By being part of these communities, you will gain knowledge that other members have gathered and it’s likely that they will be willing to share theirs if you are looking to build your own.
Members of these groups pay attention to what others say and how they interact so by engaging with them, you can both learn something new and get help for yourself.
There are many ways to find like-minded individuals in the social media management community, including through forums, chat rooms and events.
A lot of brands don’t know what kind of services they want to hire for their social media accounts. They just know that they would like to have someone manage their account, update their status, take pictures, do things like re-post content, and possibly design some covers or banners!
They don’t necessarily know if they want it monthly, quarterly, biannually, or yearly, nor do they know how much time they need per week. If this is something that you can provide, then tell them about your services and maybe win them as a client!
If there’s one thing I've learned in my career, it's that everyone else has been doing something for a while now, so if you're good at it, make sure to highlight those strengths and avoid being vague or marketing yourself way too hard.
Your chances of success will go up significantly if you work smartly and strategically instead of giving away free advice left and right.
As mentioned earlier, social media is a very popular way to promote business these days. If you have an online presence through various platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc., then there are people who will hire you to manage their accounts.
The best way to find clients is by offering your services to others directly!
By creating a free profile on one of the major social networking sites (e.g. LinkedIn) or using a free tool such as Fiverr, you can start advertising yourself as a social media manager. You may also choose to work only for certain types of businesses or regions so that you are more targeted with your client base.
Finding freelance job opportunities via direct contacts or referral sources is a great way to meet potential employers while also earning some extra money. It’s not too difficult if you are willing to put in the effort.
Consistency is one of the most important things to be as when you are offering your services, make sure that you are consistently showing up in all of the right places. This includes having social media accounts yourself, representing your clients, posting updates on the various platforms, responding to comments and messages, and keeping conversations going.
As mentioned before, starting off with no followers or fans can pose a challenge if you want to keep getting work. The solution? Make it about who you are not what you do, instead focus on creating an online presence that people will recognize you by.
Creating a fan base takes time so don’t expect quick results. But, being known and recognized for being active on several sites and supporting other users will win you many fans!
And while there is nothing wrong with earning money through advertising, investing in more authentic ways to connect with others will reap much better rewards.
Starting your social media management business does not mean creating a flashy, over-the-top site with lots of features. That is definitely way too expensive!
Most people start off by creating a simple landing page or even no front end at all until they are able to generate some traffic and interest in their services.
It’s totally okay to start out that way if you feel that it’s more appropriate for your style of marketing. But don’t discount the importance of having an attractive, well designed site that makes it easy for your potential clients to find you!
Landing pages are very useful when you are trying to get attention for your service but doing things like adding elaborate decorations can be cost prohibitive. A good rule of thumb is to spend less than $100 on your site unless you are really passionate about the design you want.
That being said, there are many free websites that you can use to quickly create your own custom looking landing pages.
