8 Traits Every Successful Social Media Manager Should Have

Social Media Marketing is more than just scheduling tweets on TweetDeck or Hootsuite and sharing blog posts on Facebook and Google+. A successful social media manager not only stays atop of the current events and trends, but understands what works and what doesn’t, has an in-depth knowledge of multiple channels and knows when’s the best time to post to get optimal results. Here are 8 traits that I believe every customer and company looks for in a social media marketing manager:

1. Friendly & Responsive

Social Media Marketing Managers are conversationalists who are able to speak with people of all demographics and enjoy doing it as well. They look forward to creating scholarly environments where ideas and topics are freely shared and discussed. Most importantly, they know how to respond to questions and comments and ensure that no stone is left unturned.

2. Goal-Oriented

Social Media Marketing needs to have an order and done with purpose, meaning that anything a social media marketing manager posts on a channel must meet some sort of objective or be part of some plan with measurable goals. This often begins with a comprehensive social media plan and an editorial calendar and continues with video, newsletters, training, interviews etc.

3. Copywriting/Copyediting Skills

The ability to create engaging and shareable content is an art and takes time to develop. Social Media Marketing Managers must know how to create catchy headlines, write engaging, yet short descriptions and structure texts in ways that they are easy to read. Customers and fans will be skimming and scanning and will have no time to read bulky texts, which means that subtitles, bullet points and numbered posts are part of skills social media managers will need to learn.

4. Storytelling

This is one skill that all social media managers should have. It is also one skill that not many managers practice enough. Social Media posts that tell the complete story, using all 5 parts (see image below), create dramatic arcs or plots that contain the formula for being interesting. And it is indeed those interesting posts that drive the most engagement. Here are a couple of suggestions on how to create a story: Slideshare, Prezi, Infographic and Videographic.

5. Analytical Skills

Social Media Managers who pay attention to numbers get way more results. That’s why successful social media marketing managers are not just skilled at Google Analytics, but also at other tools like Hootsuite, Google Trends, Hashtags.org etc.

6. Photo-Editing Skills

There are tons of online, easy-to-use photo editing tools used for cropping, resizing and tweaking images to fit social media platforms. Social Media Marketing Managers are able to make simple image tweaks to improve editorial inefficiencies and increase engagements and conversions.

7. Time Management Skills

Social media managers understand the value of being on time and sticking to the schedule. They also know how to prepare days ahead so they can generate a lot of buzz and get more people to participate in desired activities.

8. Humour

If it’s the right fit for your brand, humour can increase the “viralability” of your social media initiatives. Also, there is nothing like a humorous response to a customer to really make them into a loyal partner.

To learn more about being a successful social media marketing manager, DMAC encourages you to enroll in our Social Media Marketing course. DMAC also offers customized corporate training sessions for enterprises looking to upgrade their staff’s skills in areas of digital and internet marketing and web design. Click here to set up a free corporate training consultation.