How to build a career in social media

Whether you're earning money from creating reels or managing a brand's social media, there's no denying that social media is a major player in the job market.

Social media platforms, once just virtual hangouts for everyday pleasure, have become the next-generation platform for launching careers.

Today, the job market includes a number of jobs and opportunities in this arena, making social media an attractive career path.

And it's not without reason. With their vast reach and impact, businesses are scrambling to establish a strong online presence. And this has created a wide range of job opportunities.

So, building a career in social media is not only a wise move but also an exciting and rewarding one. But how to get started? Keep reading and learn the steps to build a successful career in social media.

Career Opportunities In Social Media

Most of us are familiar with a handful of job titles in the social media field. But the truth is, there's much more to it than just being a 'social media manager.' or 'content creator.' Some popular job roles in this domain include:

• Social Media Writer - For this role, you'll be responsible for crafting engaging and shareable copies for a brand's social media channels.

• Freelance Social Media Marketer - As a freelance social media marketer, you'll work with multiple clients to create and implement social media strategies or create content for them.

• Social Media Analyst - This role involves analyzing social media data to understand customer behavior and generate insights for businesses.

• Social Media Strategist - A strategist is responsible for creating and executing social media plans and analyzing the effectiveness of such campaigns.

• Online Reputation Manager - As the name suggests, this role involves managing a brand's online reputation by monitoring and addressing negative feedback or reviews. As well as by promoting content and activities that enhance a company's positive brand image.

• Content Optimizer - You'll need a creative flair to develop and modify content that can attract potential customers to a brand's social media pages. You also need a good understanding of SEO.

• Community Manager - You get to be the bridge between a brand and its followers. In this role, you'll engage with audiences, respond to their queries, and promote brand loyalty. This often happens on Facebook Groups, Circle, and similar exclusive experiences.

These are just a few examples, but the job market for social media professionals is vast, and new roles are continually emerging.

How to build a career in social media

It's true that there's no one set path to build a successful career in social media. But there are some crucial steps that can help you kickstart your journey and stand out from the crowd.

Be Active on Social Media

The first step towards building a career in social media is to be active on these platforms.

Start by creating profiles on different social media channels like Instagram, Facebook, Quora, etc. Then, follow relevant accounts and engage with content that interests you.

By being active on social media, you'll gain a better understanding of how these channels work and their trends. For instance, the types of hashtags that perform well, the best times to post, etc.

And if you also continue to post and create content regularly, eventually, you might end up creating a personal brand for yourself. Not to mention, you'll have a portfolio to showcase your effectiveness on social media.

Complete a Certification Course on Social Media

While hands-on experience is crucial in social media, having a certification course under your belt can make all the difference.

During application for any job role, not only in social media but in other domains as well, a recognized certification can give you an edge over other candidates.

There are many online courses that provide comprehensive training on social media marketing, analytics, content creation, and more. You can always search on sites like Upgrade, Coursera, and Udemy, and you'll come across plenty of affordable and reputed courses on social media.

Look for one that aligns with your career goals and start.

If you want to be a social media analyst, then go for a course on social media analytics, but if you want to work as a content creator then look for courses that cover content creation and strategy.

Stay Updated with the Latest Trends

Social media is an ever-changing landscape, and what might be trending today could become obsolete tomorrow. To stay relevant and ahead of the competition, be updated with the latest trends in social media.

Follow industry leaders, read blogs and articles, and attend webinars and conferences to gain insights on upcoming features, algorithm changes, etc.

For content trends, use tools like Google Trends, BuzzSumo, and SocialPilot to get an idea of what content works best for different platforms.

This will not only help you stay updated but also give you ideas on how to make your content stand out from others.

Learn Image and Video Editing

Visuals are king in the world of social media.

Good quality images and videos are crucial to grabbing audiences' attention, and having basic editing skills is a valuable asset.

Start with editing tools like Canva, Adobe Spark, or InShot to help you create appealing visuals for your posts. And upgrade your skills to cover Adobe's suite of tools (if it's in your budget). You shouldn't forget AI, either. You can build your ability to generate powerful AI images by learning to craft prompts.

Also, consider learning some basic graphic designing concepts, as it can come in handy when creating branded content for businesses.

Engage With People

Whether followers or people in communities, social media is all about building relationships. Engaging with people not only helps you increase your reach but also lets you understand what type of content resonates with them.

With your audience, engage through comments and live sessions.

On the other hand, if you want to learn something, join communities, and don't just be a silent member. The more active you are, the more you build your reputation and connections with others. And this is true leverage that will help you find a job or a client.

By being part of communities on s social mediaplatforms, you can get valuable insights and network with like-minded individuals.

Develop Skills in SEO and Analytics

A crucial part of succeeding in social media is understanding how to increase visibility and reach.

This is where Search Engine Optimization (SEO) comes into play. Learning the basics of SEO can help you create content that is discoverable and ranks well on search engines.

Additionally, understanding analytics is a must. Many social media platforms provide detailed analytics that can give insights into your audience's behavior, engagement levels, and more.

Facebook has MetaBase, Instagram has Insights and LinkedIn has Analytics. And to know how to use these analytic sections, you don't even need to go through a course. Just go through the guided tour of each platform to understand what data is available and how you can use it.

Learn to leverage the numbers and statistics you see and interpret them to improve your content strategy as well.

Track Your Results

In the end, you'll get hired to show results from your social media marketing.

You need to build a portfolio or have ready-to-read reports of the efforts of creating content and driving metrics like views, impressions, comments, likes, shares, and so on.

It's also helpful to be able to link your social media content creation efforts to results on a business's website or physical store. For example, driving more footfalls or sales. Or creating high numbers of viewers or participants during an event.

So, don't just do social media activities for the sake of it. You want them to drive real outcomes and track the benefits of your work, too.

Final Thoughts

Social media is a vast and diverse field, offering endless opportunities for those willing to put in the effort.

Whether you choose to work with a brand or build your personal brand, building a career in social media can be exciting and rewarding.

And the way it has become a crucial part of our daily lives, it's safe to say that social media is the future. Hence, starting a career in this field will only open up more opportunities as it continues to evolve and expand.

So, if you're passionate about social media, don't be afraid to take the plunge and start building a career in it.