How to hire the 'right' person to run your social media

You have made the decision to outsource your social media management, but now you need to choose the right person or organisation to run this for you and your pet business.

There are many reasons businesses choose to outsource, whether that be that you want to focus on your core business activity, you need someone to take your social media to the next level so it is a worthwhile task, or maybe you are time-poor and just need a fresh set of eyes to ensure you are staying ahead of your competitors; just to name a few.

Whatever your reason for looking to outsource, you need to make sure that it is a worthwhile investment. So, what is it that you need?

Many businesses will make the decision to make a specific hire to take on this role in-house - this, much like the outsourcing option, has both advantages and disadvantages. For the sake of this article, we will be dissecting the idea of outsourcing your social media marketing, so that you can ensure you are hiring the right person.

It seems that ‘everyone’ is a social media expert these days. With social media becoming a daily occurrence in most people's personal lives, it's hard to differentiate between ‘what looks good’ and what is actually adding and creating value for your business, in line with its aims. Social media is no longer just a ‘tick box’ exercise and is now a crucial and integral part of the marketing process. So let’s take a look at some of the key considerations which will help you decide how to hire the right person to manage your social media:

1. Sector

Which sector your business operates in is a really important factor in choosing the right person to run your social media. As a pet professional, using someone with veterinary and clinical expertise can be a time-saver when you're trying to run a busy business. With this in mind, you may want to consider checking out your agency or freelancer's credentials and look for a team able to offer a bespoke solution that works around you, with a key contact you can deal with directly. Large agencies are unlikely to be able to accommodate last-minute requests on a Friday afternoon (potentially during your peak times) and if they do, often an additional cost will be incurred.

2. Budget

Let’s face it - we all want the biggest bang for our buck. You want your investment to work for you, in line with your business aims and not be constrained to a ‘package’. Outsourcing to a professional will allow you transparency in terms of reporting and also ‘know-how’ in terms of maximising your ROI (return on investment) through tried and tested methods. A bespoke solution can help you reduce your marketing costs in the long run and offers the flexibility to change when required, without lengthy contracts.

3. Relationship

What type of relationship do you want with someone tasked with placing your brand in the eye of the consumer? Alongside the basics - understanding your brand, tone of voice, and client or customer, there is a huge element of trust in giving someone the opportunity to bring your vision to life. Client or customer experience and reputation management are a huge part of the digital world and can be pivotal in the longevity of your business, so you want to ensure you have a capable individual managing this effectively for you. Social media is not a 9-5 job, so do you want someone to be an extension of your team who is truly invested in a small number of clients, or a larger agency where your practice is one of many?

Above all, the key takeaway is to hire someone as invested in your success as you are! From there, you can’t go far wrong.

If you would like a free consultation and to talk about what you would like to achieve through social media, drop us a message at hello@join-embark.com

- we love to chat!

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