Social media channels have become an important part of the lives of billions of people, which makes them essential tools for businesses, both large and small.
Today, more than 76% of social media users do product research on social media. If you establish a meaningful connection with them by using winning social media strategies, you can maximize your sales and take your business to the next level.
Companies now employ directors of a social media strategy to plan, execute and analyze social media strategies according to their marketing goals. The demand for social media strategy directors is growing exponentially with the increase in social media usage.
If you are interested in becoming a director of social media strategy but don’t know much about this profession, you have come to the right place. In this article, we will explain the roles, skills, salary, and qualifications of a social media strategy director, so you can learn whether it is the right profession for you or not.
Who is the director of social media strategy?
By the title, it is easy to comprehend who a director of social media strategy may be in a company. He is a part of a social media marketing department and directs his own social media strategy team, whose goals are to:
- Understand the social media marketing goals of the company
- Design a social media strategy based on marketing goals
- Execute the strategy using available resources
- Track different metrics to evaluate strategy performance
- Make amendments to the strategy based on its performance
- Measure success rate and present it to high-ranking executives of the company
- Make changes to the strategy based on comments of executives
A social media strategy director keeps an eye on all team members to confirm everything is being done according to the plan. He guides his team and ensures they make the most out of the social media plan.
What are the job responsibilities of the director of social media strategy?
Directors of social media strategy play numerous roles that vary from company to company based on company size, industry type, and marketing goals.
In larger companies, they may liaise with social media strategists to design and execute strategies for them, but in smaller companies, they may have to create and implement these strategies themselves.
Here, we have mentioned the most common responsibilities of the director of social media strategy.
Develop and implement social media strategy: As a director of social media strategy, you will have to identify your marketing goals and objectives that align with the company’s goals. Learn about your audience and then devise different ways of effectively grabbing their attention and increasing total revenue.
Identify the right KPIs: Each social media campaign has its unique key performance indicators (KPIs) that tell you how it is performing against set targets. A social media strategy director is responsible for choosing the right KPIs based on campaign goals and then monitoring them.
Evaluate the performance of social media campaigns: A social media campaign is a set of planned actions taken to target a specific audience in order to boost sales or increase company awareness. A social media strategy director assigns a budget to each campaign and ensures its return is more than the investment.
Manage and publish high-quality content: Content is the king, whether it is in video form or text form. It is what can directly convey your message to your audience and help you reach your marketing goals. The director of social media strategy reviews and publishes content that interests his target audience.
Keep all social media accounts up and running: According to a survey, internet users have 8.4 social media accounts per person. This means a business needs to create more than one account to expand its reach.
The director of social media strategy inspects different social media business accounts daily and checks post engagement rate, the number of followers, reviews, and customer messages to see how these accounts are performing.
Collaborate with other teams: The director of social media strategy collaborates with the product development, marketing, and social media management teams to maximize the word-of-mouth potential of a newly launched product/service. He ensures that every team is working towards a mutual goal and all are on the same page.
Interact with business professionals and customers: A director of social media strategy tries to create a strong network by communicating and interacting with industry professionals. For this, he takes the initiative and attends high-profile professional events to connect with industry peers and share/learn new trends.
He understands that building a strong customer relationship is the key to long-term success; hence, he interacts with customers on each social media platform. It helps his understand customers’ needs and then form strategies and plans accordingly.
Train new team members: A director of social media strategy is aware of the roles and needs of every team member. He knows what challenges new members face while trying to adjust in a new environment. Therefore, in order to form a successful and efficient team, he instructs and guides them so that they understand team goals, make fewer mistakes and maximize their performance.
Give positive feedback: The director’s feedback helps team members and managers understand how their seniors view their work. So, he gives constructive feedback and tells others how their performance is helping the company meet its goals. He tells them what they are doing correctly and what could be improved in a positive way.
Keep abreast of new social media practices and technologies: In order to survive in a competitive market, it is important to be aware of new social media trends and technologies. The social media strategy director stays alert, explores the internet, joins online communities, and attends webinars to find new ways to reach more people and increase gross profit.
Attend educational and business conferences: A social media strategy director attends conferences to learn new ideas and connect with industry peers. He shares the learned information with his team members to help them upgrade and improve their performance.
What makes a good social media strategy director?
A good social media strategy director should have the following skills and abilities.
Communication
Social media channels are used to communicate with people. A director of social media strategy should have good communication skills so that he can connect with a variety of audiences through different platforms.
He should be able to handle both satisfied and unsatisfied customers in a professional manner. He should also be able to share feedback with teams and communicate ideas to stakeholders.
Social media competency
A good social media strategy director uses the best practices and methods to build an effective social media strategy according to the company’s goals.
His research and analysis skills help him better understand the target audience and generate fitting content. He knows how to tell a compelling story on social channels to attract and engage the audience in order to expand brand awareness.
Branding and marketing skills
Branding and marketing skills are the keys to success on a social media channel. Around 90% of marketers believe that their marketing efforts have significantly improved online exposure for their brand.
The director of social media strategy knows how to promote and sell services/products in an effective way. He establishes long-term relationships with customers to grow repeat purchase rates and reduce customer attrition.
Ability to build digital relationships
The director of social media strategy is inherently social. He identifies and connects with his target audience to make them feel valued and increase the market share of the company. He builds lasting business relationships with industry experts and members of his community to help the business grow steadily.
Qualitative and quantitative data analysis
Data understanding and analysis are very important to measure the effectiveness and true success of a social media strategy.
A good director of social media strategy can understand the performance of a strategy through data and prepare its report for the high-ranking people in the company. He informs them about the progress of the company towards its goals and also gives feedback to teams on how they can improve their performance next time.
Efficiency, management, and organization
You cannot formulate, execute, and analyze social media strategy without organizing tasks efficiently and managing time. The director of social media strategy implements policies, tools, and practices to keep everything in order and plan things ahead.
Patience and empathy
Empathy and patience make good customer service. An expert director of social media strategy uses these soft skills to make customers believe that their concerns and opinions matter. He puts himself in his customer’s shoes to understand their needs and offer suitable solutions accordingly. Sometimes, he may not be able to provide a solution, but he is always present to deliver empathy.
What qualifications do I need to become the director of social media strategy?
A social media strategy director should have at least a bachelor’s degree in a field that shows his business, communication, strategy development, and social media skills. But remember that having a degree is not enough or does not guarantee a director-level job. You must have the required skillset and confidence in your abilities to reach this position.
How much is a social media strategy director paid?
Your salary as a director of social media strategy will mainly depend on:
- Your experience and skills
- Your job tasks
- The size of the company
- Industry type
- Your geographical location
- Your qualification
According to Glassdoor, the average annual salary of a director of social media or social media strategy in the USA is $80,028. The base pay is $60,756 per year, while the additional pay is $19,272 per year. It can vary depending on the factors mentioned above.
Interview questions for a social media strategy director (with sample answers)
Preparing for an interview for the social media strategy director position? Here are a few important interview questions you should prepare before you go.
Why should we hire you and not the other candidate?
To answer this question, you should have knowledge about the company and the role you are applying for. Show the interviewer that you have the knowledge, skills, experience, professional achievements, and passion required to meet their requirements and bring profit to the company.
You don’t know about the abilities of other candidates, but you know yourself. So, don’t hesitate to tell them what you are capable of doing.
Which social media channel is the most effective for our business?
To prepare the answer to this question, you need to use your web search skills.
Find the business industry and study it. Recognize the needs of its customers. Once you do that, it will be easier for you to find the social media platform your particular customers use the most. Tell the interviewer about that channel and give reasons why you think it is the best for the company.
How do you measure the success of a social media strategy?
There are certain metrics that you must check in order to track the success of a strategy. Some of these metrics include engagement (likes, shares, and comments), ROI (conversions and referrals), awareness, and customer care (response rate and time). The goal of a strategy will determine which metrics are more important for you.
Should each social media platform have a separate strategy?
Each platform has its unique practices of generating engagement and increasing sales. It is better to have a specific strategy for each platform so that you can target your particular audience accordingly.
Summing it up
A skilled director of social media strategy develops and implements a social media strategy considering the goals and objectives of the brand. As with most jobs, the roles and responsibilities of the director can vary according to the employer’s requirements.
His qualification requirements also depend on the company, but most employers generally seek candidates with bachelor’s degrees in business, social media, communication, and related fields.
If you have the skills mentioned in the ‘what makes a good social media strategy director’ section, you may be able to get a director position job in your dream company.