BECOME A SOCIAL MEDIA CONSULTANT
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE FIELD AND OF THE JOB
The need for social media consultants is growing and it will be for some time. More and more businesses are doing business
online, therefore it is very important that they maintain an online presence.
Large corporations and business firms can easily hire a full-time staff coordinator or consulting agency to run their Twitter,
Facebook, and Instagram accounts, but smaller businesses frequently have to manage their own marketing on social media.
But, because they have a great number of other responsibilities, many times business owners are too overwhelmed, busy or
undereducated to spend a lot of time on developing their social media strategy.
As an individual social media consultant you have more flexibility than an agency . And according to recent data, individual
consultants and freelancers can have higher earning potential and a wider salary range than other social media professions.
But remember—you’ll be a business owner. That means unless you have the money to outsource, you will have to do the
accounting, billing, tax payments, marketing, sales pitches, content development and networking (i.e., all of the tasks that keep
a business running).
SOME DIFFERENT TYPES OF SOCIAL MEDIA JOBS
Social media coordinator
Social media strategist
Engagement specialist
Public relations manager
Brand specialist
Social media specialist
Content manager
Social media manager
Marketing manager
Marketing analyst
WHAT DO SOCIAL MEDIA CONSULTANTS DO?
Social media consultants are individuals or agencies who work with clients to improve, optimize and grow their social media
presence. Every social media consultant’s day-to-day work will look different depending on their offerings, which can range
from one service to another.
Some of your day-to-day duties may include:
Setting up a social media strategy for you clients.
You will help them choose the correct channels to help them to reach their target audience.
Know what your clients competitors strategies are.
Implement schedules for posting content regarding their target audience.
Creating articles, graphics and videos for various social media channels.
As a consultant for social media, you can effectively steer your clients in the right direction concerning ideal tactics.
Working together with clients and developing techniques to maintain their brand message with various media platforms.
And as their business grows, yours will too.
HOW DO YOU BECOME A SOCIAL MEDIA CONSULTANT?
Some employers and clients may expect you to have a degree.
If you have a degree in advertising, marketing, public relations, digital and social media marketing, etc, that will be a big
advantage.
But a degree is not necessary, there are many online agencies that offer training and certificates in social media consulting.
Some are free, some costs as little as $99 and some are more than a thousand dollars. Some of the training courses are as
short as 8 hours others take several months.
Not that long ago, I took a course from Google on Digital Marketing. It was a course that if you could commit 10 hours a week,
you could comlete the course in less than 6 months. The course cost $39 per month. so if it took the six months, it would cost
$234. That’s not a bad investment for all the information that you learn.
In this course you will learn to manage digital marketing campaigns, attract and engage customers, and sell products online.
Digital marketing involves using email, social media, search engines, display advertising, and other online channels to attract
customers, encourage them to make purchases, and keep them coming back.
Learn how social media can attract and engage customers. You’ll learn to use digital marketing tools like Canva, Constant
Contact, and Hootsuite; marketing platforms like HubSpot and Mailchimp and social media platforms like Twitter.
Some of the in-demand jobs you may qualify for with a Google Certificate are:
Marketing Coordinator
Search Engine Optimization Specialist
Paid Search Specialist
Email Marketing Specialist
Media Planner
Here is another online course that may interest you.
The “Social Media Consultant Certificate Course Online”.
The cost of this course is $149 at this time and has a recommended completion date of 6 weeks, however it may be completed in as little as 4 weeks or as long as 12 weeks.
I am not recommending this course nor do receive any commission from this course. I am only providing this information as an
example of how you can find an online course and be able to complete that course in a short period of time.
You should be very selective when choosing any course whether it is an online course or a course from a public school or
college and make sure that the eventual result will be what you are looking for and properly prepare you for the position you are
seeking
Networking will help you learn to become a social media consultant and will also help secure jobs once you become a social
media consultant.
One of the first things I would suggest to do is to build a portfolio for prospective clients. Start a blog or a website of your own.
Become familiar with facebook, twitter and instagram and other social media platforms. You need to be comfortable with the
various platforms, their reporting tools, and social media analytics.
Create a resume. Include your personal and professional profiles: You can list your user names on social websites so
employers can see how you promote your personal brand on social media. Show your skills. Use your resume to show that you
understand graphic design principles and have writing skills by creating a visually attractive, professional document.
WHEN YOU BECOME A SOCIAL MEDIA CONSULTANT
Start small
For some it may be a slow transition from building their side hustle to becoming a full-time consultant.
Taking on one or two clients in the beginning gives you the safety net of your current job while your first starting out. If you’re
having trouble finding your first clients, consider doing some outsourcing jobs until you can build a resume
some places you may find outsourced jobs are:
Fiverr
Upwork
Networking in local freelancer groups
Facebook Groups
Attending social media conferences
Participating in industry Twitter chats or Spaces
Job boards (LinkedIn, Indeed, Monster, etc.)
Who knows? Once you build up your clientele, you may consider starting your own social media agency
I hope you enjoyed this article. This article on becoming a social media consultant is like most of my other articles. A lot of the
information can be used to create different ways to make money online. The information in this article with a little more
education could prepare you to be an SEO Specialist, or help you maintain your blog or website, or create an e-commerce
store, the possibilities are endless.
Keep reading articles (mine and others) and watching how-to videos. What you can do and what you can be is entirely up to
you.
Thank you for reading and please send in any comments or questions and please share this site with your friends.