What is a social media marketing consultant? You can find a lot of self-proclaimed social media experts and social media consultants online, but those who are real specialists in the field of social media marketing are harder to come by. As a career option, it is not as common as web design or search engine optimization (SEO). The ease of social networking and publishing blogs online today provides the impression that there is a bigger number of qualified and experienced consultants than there really is.
Although there is currently a dearth for social media marketing experts today, there are lots of job opportunities in the market. After all, almost all businesses with online presence, especially those that are, in one way or another, involved in it, are in need of one. Unfortunately, a lot of those who have relevant experience, tend to overstate their current skills and abilities. For one, the job entails more than just experience and knowledge in the set up of accounts for blogging sites and other social network sites like Twitter and Facebook.
So what does it take to be a social media marketing consultant? A keen understanding of social content planning and the personas involved is of primary importance, as well as sufficient social network research and development work. The job also requires some experience in social content promotion, actual SEO, and social monitoring and analysis of relevant reports and insights. Although possible, it is not very likely that a kid just 3 or 4 years out of college can have that much experience.
To be a specialist in the field of social media marketing, the right training and sufficient experience are required. Even without actually holding a formal job as one, relevant experience can be obtained through various ways. Here are some of them:
* Actual document experience on a blogging or personal site
* Becoming a super user with social networking applications
* After having acquired the basic skills, offering free services to small businesses or non-profit organizations, or you can start marketing a personal site
* Active on and offline participation on networks that are relevant to your niche or focus areas which may include particular industries, demographics or geographical units
When searching for jobs you may be qualified for, it will greatly help to highlight your skills and competencies with samples of your work, and include them in all your profiles with various social network sites. If you do not have samples of actual work you have done yet, you can offer sample audits of companies that you intend to work with. You can also provide your own insights on the work of others.
Whether you intend to work for an employer or to manage your own social media marketing consulting business, it is important to keep on learning as the field is too dynamic and changes can happen often and quickly. The job of a social media marketing consultant can be very lucrative, but it will all depend on the quality of work you can offer, and the results you can deliver to your clients.
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