It is no secret that social media has become the go-to place for people to express their opinions and communicate with others.
Business has been significantly impacted.
This leads to a demand for professionals who are knowledgeable in managing social media accounts.
Their job is to grow an account’s reach while engaging, educating, and entertaining their following to build trust and create loyal customers.
If you’ve been thinking about becoming a Social Media Manager and are looking for info on how to become one but don’t have any experience or degree, read on.
What is a Social Media Manager?
A Social Media Manager oversees all aspects of a company’s social media accounts.
They are responsible for creating strategies to optimize reach and retention based on thorough research of the target audience.
They are also in charge of publishing content, engaging with followers, moderating comments, analyzing analytics, and optimizing the content accordingly.
What do Social Media Managers Do?
Social Media Managers are responsible for creating and maintaining the voice of a company or brand on social media.
They develop and execute strategies for increasing follower counts and engagement.
They typically decide on what social media platforms a business will be active and to what extent.
Social Media Managers (SMMs) start with creating overall strategies and defining goals. Then they think of the ways brands interact with their customers by customizing their customer’s journey. The process is followed by designing and producing creative content to post on various social media platforms.
This content includes text, videos, and graphics. SMMs monitor interactions with followers to respond quickly and effectively.
Additionally, they use insights from social media analytics dashboards to adjust their strategies accordingly.
What Services Do Social Media Managers Offer?
Social Media Managers offer a wide array of services.
These include but are not limited to:
- Creating strategies.
- Building online sales funnels.
- Creating graphics, copy, and video content.
- Engaging with following.
- Monitoring and analyzing data.
- Optimizing content based on results.
Some SMMs are also responsible for managing paid ads online. However, this is usually a whole other role.
How Much Do Social Media Managers Make?
That sure is one of the most important questions you have.
The amount you can make varies and depends on several things. It depends on your location, the services you offer, your experience, are you looking for a job, do you work on a freelance basis, etc.
Researching the average salaries in your area is an excellent place to start, but it will vary depending on what you’re offering.
Some people might be tempted to work with big companies that can offer them a steady monthly salary.
I recommend you go through our Social Media Manager curriculum and start your freelance career with a minimal financial investment.
Even though many self-proclaimed SMMs charge nothing close to the job’s worth, you can realistically begin making at least $500 per platform in 2022.
According to Payscale, Social Media Managers make between $36K and $80K a year in the United States or working with US companies.
On the other hand, it is significantly lower in the UK, where Social Media Managers make around £20K-£40K.
Once you feel confident enough in your skills and knowledge, you can start running your Social Media Management agency.
What Skills and Qualities does a Social Media Manager need?
The job of a social media manager is constantly evolving and changing, so you must keep up with the latest trends.
Some of the skills and qualities you will need to become and work as a Social Media Manager include:
Communication
Communication skills are essential in this field as you will be working with clients, team members, and other people daily.
You need to be able to effectively communicate your ideas and plans through written and verbal means.
Communication is essential because even though you can do social media management remotely, you’re still constantly communicating with others – clients, teammates, and most importantly, the target audience.
But don’t worry if you don’t consider yourself a good communicator. There certainly are ways to improve that.
Also, keep in mind that being a good listener is the most important part of communicating with others.
Good organizational skills
Social media management is a fast-paced and ever-changing industry.
As an SMM, you will create, schedule, and publish content on various social media platforms.
This requires good organizational skills so that your work can be planned and structured in a way that meets the needs of your clients and the target audience.
Additionally, you need to keep up with changes in social media trends and algorithms so your content remains relevant.
Luckily, we live in modern days, and we have access to tools such as Trello and Asana to help you stay organized at all times.
Creativity
To create compelling, engaging, and shareable content, you must have a sense of creativity.
Your posts should be well written and visually appealing, so they stand out in people’s newsfeeds.
How do you get a creative flow going? Try researching the topic your audience is interested in, and then do a brainstorm session thinking of new, fresh ideas.
Think of original perspectives and ways to reverse engineer the desired outcome from your content.
Make sure you take care of your body, mind, and spirit to maintain and optimize your level of creativity.
Passion For Writing
As a Social Media Manager, a passion for writing will be one of your most supportive qualities.
Do you enjoy texting, writing emails, or communicating online in general? How about keeping up with current events or writing articles for your blog on a daily basis?
If the answer is yes, you would be an exceptional Social Media Manager.
Writing social media posts is very similar to speaking to friends and acquaintances.
The most important thing would be to understand who you’re speaking with, their interests, and triggers.
How do you get to know your audience?
How about conducting some market research before creating social media posts and looking at what similar brands are doing.
Once you have an idea of who will be consuming your content and how they would respond best, this will give you an insight into how to create great pieces of writing that engage with them appropriately.
Being Good in Research
To be a successful Social Media Manager, you need to be a research master.
The good news is that since you are reading this right now, your research skills must be far away from average.
Think about it. You had this idea of what it would be like to become a Social Media Manager.
The thought was strong enough for you to find this post.
You not only found it, but you also read this far, and this is a perfect sign that your research skills are on point. That’s a pretty good sign you are good in research, and you’re on the right track.
You’ll be required to use and perfect your research skills to become a social media manager every step of the way.
You’ll have to do a ton of research by going out and getting clients, creating social media strategies, and figuring out who the target audience is.
As part of your job, you will need to know everything about the brand you’re representing – their values, mission statement, target audience, etc.
Keeping up the brand’s voice is a must in this industry, so you must have a keen eye for detail when conducting your research.
Patience
Patience is a real virtue.
Especially when it comes to being a freelancer and working with clients in general.
Finding the right clients and building up your reputation can take a while but you’ll eventually get there if you’re patient enough.
Once you find clients, you will often need patience to deal with their demands, educate them on the best marketing practices, etc.
The next stage you will need patience in is the actual work – engaging and communicating with your clients’ audience. Make small steps and celebrate each one of them!
Being a Quick Learner
The always-changing platforms and algorithms require social media managers to be adaptable and learn new ways quickly.
You can specialize in particular social media platforms, but there’s always the chance of the next best thing emerging that you will need to learn how to use and follow its trends.
SMMs use tools to optimize their work are improving and multiplying by the minute—being on the lookout for ways and means to improve your work, systems, and processes in an invaluable quality.
SEO Skills
SEO skills are crucial for anyone who wants to pursue a career in digital marketing.
It’s not enough anymore to know how to post and schedule content. You need to optimize your posts for search engines, track your results, and analyze your data to see what is working and what isn’t.
If you want to become a social media manager, you must start learning about SEO right now. There are plenty of online resources, so there’s no excuse not to get started.
And don’t forget – practice makes perfect! So start posting regularly on your social media accounts and see how you can improve the visibility of your content.
Social Media Managers Training and Education
To The Dream Job is a blog specifically created for anyone who wants the freedom to live wherever they want in the world and who thinks that working in digital marketing is the answer.
That said, I can’t stress this enough, you can make it happen without a fancy degree, even if you’re just starting.
Some of the most outstanding marketers are self-taught.
How do you get started?
There are many ways to learn about the field. Many of them are free, or not as expensive as a degree.
For example, there are free online courses on Hubspot. You will learn digital marketing skillsets and obtain a certification. For Free!
At the same time, other websites offer paid certification programs.
I’ve gathered some of the best courses and most valid certifications in our Curriculums section.
If you refer to them, you can advance fairly quickly. Just follow the steps and you’ll be prepared to start your freelance digital marketing business in no time.
Career Options and Pathways
So, you are still firm on your decision to become a social media manager?
Here are the options ahead of you:
In-House Social Media Manager
You can go the classic route and apply for a position in a company as an in-house digital marketer.
The good news is that in 2022 every business needs a social media manager. Therefore, the demand for the role will keep growing in the upcoming years.
Some of the pros of being employed directly by a business or a marketing agency:
You immediately have the chance to apply your knowledge.
Having a support system from other members of the team.
Learning as you go from a more senior marketer who can become your mentor.
You’ll be able to see how all the departments in a company are interconnected.
Here are some companies that are hiring remotely and don’t require a degree.
On another hand, being employed limits your income and exposure to different industries and platforms.
It will be beneficial until you build up some confidence and start working as a freelance SMM.
Freelance Social Media Manager
You can go ahead and look for clients on your own.
It is pretty standard for this job to be done on a freelance basis.
It may sound a bit more intimidating, especially if you don’t have any experience.
However, I recommend going the freelance route. There are certain benefits to it:
- You break your fears faster.
- You learn a lot on the go because you only rely on yourself.
- You make more money.
- It’s the way to manage your social media management agency in the long run.
Running Your Own Digital Marketing Agency
Managing your digital marketing agency is the natural path for many freelancers.
This is the way to scale your business, manage a team, and take on high-ticket projects.
Having a digital marketing agency means taking on a lot more projects and clients, and also more responsibility.
You can choose to outsource part of the work, have employees, educate other aspiring social media managers.
There are many options, but it all starts with taking that first step.
If you’re considering starting your agency, there are a few things you should know:
- It will require a lot of hard work.
- You’ll also have to be able to wear many hats and juggle multiple projects simultaneously.
- You must be a social butterfly and good at networking – as most of your business will come from word-of-mouth referrals.
- But most importantly, you need a solid understanding of digital marketing concepts and strategies. Once you do, you’ll be in a much better position to start (or grow) your very own agency.
Who is already doing it?
An excellent example of an SMM who is self-taught and super successful is Rachel Pedersen.
She used to be a single mom on welfare and food stamps working as a hairdresser.
She started out helping a client of hers. Once she realized social media is a thing, she never looked back.
Along with running a digital marketing agency, Rachel created an online training portal to help others follow their dreams.
You will find much-needed support in her Facebook group – Social Media United Private Member’s Community.
In order to get in the group, you used to have to become part of her SMM training which is now completely free.
She currently runs two multimillion businesses, got a book deal, speaks at events and it’s the true example of someone who follows their dreams.
She is a great mentor, her programs are in our Curriculums and she’s worth following on TikTok and Instagram.
Network with other SMMs
When starting out with a new career, it feels good to have a support system of like-minded people.
There are places online where you can find support.
There you will find people who are going through the same struggles, questions, and fears as you.
They most likely wouldn’t be in your immediate environment.
That’s why as a Social Media Manager, you will find them online of course.
There are Facebook groups where you will find support, understanding, advice, and possibly some friends and co-workers.
Some of the ones I’m part of and I recommend are:
Social Media United Private Member’s Community
Women in Marketing
Boss Moms
Social media managers are in high demand and the job is only going to become more popular.
Don’t hesitate to start your journey to becoming a social media manager!
You’ll be surprised by how much fun it is. If you want a career that can provide stability, flexibility, creativity, then social media management may be for you!
Who knows, maybe one day you’ll be the next big influencer on Instagram or Snapchat.
I hope this blog post has answered any questions that might have been lingering in your mind about how to become a social media manager with no experience or degree. Till next time, stay social!
