Establishing a Social Media Team for Sustained Marketing Triumph
Ten years ago, it was safe to believe that taking a break from social media wouldn’t result in missing much. However, nowadays, every day presents multiple trending topics, a couple of brand crises, and numerous viral products. Brands without adequate social media teams are not only missing out on significant events, but they are also losing numerous daily chances to increase brand recognition and loyalty.
Why are businesses still allocating resources to social media teams as if it’s still 2013?
As social media has evolved, so have the expectations and capabilities of social marketers and teams. They take on content creation, strategy development, data analysis, community engagement—not to mention keeping up with an ever-evolving network landscape.
The truth is there’s no one-size-fits-all social media team structure because there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to social media management. Social media org charts have to reflect the unique needs of your business and audience.
This manual is intended to assist you in considering the various elements involved in creating a social media division that ensures success for all parties involved, including leaders and team members. Continue reading for recommendations on how to organize your team.
- 5 must-know social media team structures to consider
- 7 social media team roles to consider for your org
- Three indications that it’s time to grow your social media team.
- How to future-proof your social media team
5 must-know social media team structures to consider
The word “restructuring” typically invokes a sense of fear, but when applied to your social media team it’s most definitely an opportunity. The dynamic nature of social helps marketers refine and grow their skills quickly, so they can level up to the next stop on their career path.
Actively exploring different organizational structures for social media teams can lead to significant advancements in a social marketer’s career. If you’re eager to make changes but unsure of where to start, here are five options to think about:
1. Network
The majority (64%) of social media teams are organized by network, aligning individual team members to specific networks—like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn. This approach empowers individuals to become experts on their assigned platform and take full ownership of a strategy from development to execution.
In 2022, our social media team tried out a structure tailored to each specific network, but ultimately chose not to continue with it. Although it led to more deliberate content creation and a better grasp of insights for each platform’s audience, it wasn’t feasible for a team as small as ours to maintain.
Unsurprisingly, having a separate strategy for each social network is hard. As more and more platforms join the chat, creating effective strategies for each of them is virtually impossible.
Olivia Jepson
Senior Social Media Analyst
The popularity of this team organization arose during a period of greater stability in social media. However, the environment has since transformed into a more dynamic realm where the supremacy of certain platforms is no longer guaranteed. The emergence of new platforms and the swift shift in consumer tastes means that dedicating team members to particular networks may now lead to inefficiencies and overlaps.
Our experience revealed that a network-based social media team structure can create silos and gaps, particularly when a new network gains popularity (hello, Threads!). However, it still has potential as an interim structure for new teams developing a social media marketing strategy from the ground up.
2. Audience engagement
The second most common team structure focuses on audience engagement goals and patterns, which can vary based on your industry or business size. The main categories include:
- Awareness: Creating content that’s designed to boost brand visibility with new and existing audiences.
- Engagement: Creating content and engaging with inbound messages (comments, DMs, etc.) with the goal of building community and increasing brand loyalty.
- Customer Service: Managing customer service questions, requests or complaints to ensure they’re resolved in a timely manner.
Of course, these teams go beyond content creation. For instance, an awareness team might include a content creator, influencer marketing manager and performance analyst to ensure content stays relevant and valuable.
This method requires people to operate within various networks, therefore a strong social media management tool is essential. Combining workflows into one system is the sole solution to avoid your team from wasting excessive time switching between different platforms.
3. Distribution
Teams structured around distribution needs and tactics align roles around content creation and publishing formats. This setup is good for businesses that need to produce a lot of different content formats to meet the distribution needs of their audience.
Think about when you go from writing a lengthy email into recording a video—it’s not easy to switch your brain to a different skill. This is especially hard for creatives, who have to create a high volume of content in different formats. Allowing individuals to carve distinct lanes based on content formats (text, static images, short-form video, long-form video, etc.) gives them the focus they need to produce high-quality work.
It’s important for teams utilizing this structure to be aware that it may result in audience interaction being deprioritized. Although producing creative and captivating content is essential, our most recent Index report revealed that the majority of consumers appreciate brands that actively engage with their audience on social media platforms.
4. Internal functional support
Designing social media departments around internal functions aligns teams with different departments or business units, supporting the creation of tailored social media strategies that benefit specific areas of a company.
Aligning social strategies with internal functions grants departments greater agency in shaping social efforts that directly support their work. This method provides a clearer understanding of what social media can achieve for each department. In practice, this might look like:
- A dedicated team focused on recruitment and building the employer brand to assist with human resources requirements.
- A team concentrating on social commerce and down-funnel content to bolster sales efforts.
- A team focusing on social customer care to enhance customer support functions.
This method tackles a constant worry for social media departments: the feeling of being isolated from other teams. While most marketers acknowledge that other departments influence social media strategies and vice versa, almost half (43%) of these teams still experience a sense of seclusion.
This approach also proves effective for businesses managing a portfolio of brands, ensuring that each brand benefits from specialized social media resources tailored to its unique needs.
5. Center of excellence
A social media center of excellence (CoE) model operates similarly to the internal functional support model but with a reverse approach. Instead of teams aligning with departments to formulate social strategies, each department appoints a representative to participate in a council, contributing insights to shape the social strategy.
Key individuals involved often consist of members from the public relations team, employer branding department, human resources, product development, and customer service. Collectively, they provide important insights into the organization’s social media approach, promoting teamwork among different divisions within the company.
We asked Kate Winick, former Senior Director of Social Media and Brand Marketing at Peloton, to give us an example of what that might look like.
“Consider a B2C brand managing their LinkedIn account. It’s still social, but it’s completely different from consumer-facing channels. There are stakeholders from your recruitment and employer brand teams who need to reach candidates and current employees. CoE models allow these stakeholders to manage a channel like LinkedIn strategically, without relying on your social team and stretching their bandwidth too thin.”
Winick currently consults top brands on their team structure, including centers of excellence, and advises them on how to interact with stakeholders from other departments. In this role, she’s found that CoE models work well for large businesses that have social stakeholders distributed throughout their org chart.
If your company matches this profile, considering the CoE framework could be a smart decision to synchronize your social initiatives with the broader objectives of the organization.
7 social media team roles to consider for your org
Finding a structure that suits your business needs may illuminate gaps that are present in your social media department. Here are some roles that should be at the top of your wishlist as you plan for team growth.
The social media manager
If you have the budget for just one social media marketing professional, it’s best to hire a versatile social media manager.
Social media managers know your brand inside and out. They are the ones drawing up the blueprint for your social strategy, goals and marketing plan. They’re focused on developing and promoting engaging content, especially when they’re flying solo and measuring the success of that content.
This person should also be the one building cross-departmental relationships, with a little assistance from other marketing leaders so social can make a business-wide impact. Ultimately, this person is the Swiss Army knife of your social team and has a diverse set of skills that includes writing, communication, data analysis and so much more.
The content creator
Your most valuable resource on social media is the material you produce, and having a team member specifically tasked with creating it can be a significant advantage. The role of a content creator is to assist the social media manager by alleviating some of the workload related to content creation, allowing the manager to concentrate on strategic tasks. A content creator is skilled at crafting compelling narratives and possesses a creative mindset. They need to stay informed about industry developments and social media trends, as this information will guide their content strategy and inspire their creative approach.
At larger companies, a content creator might work with your brand’s creative team or social agency to develop creative assets. In smaller companies, this role might be a multimedia content specialist who can do some design, photography, video and copywriting work for social themselves.
The social data analyst
Having someone on your social media team who is capable and eager to analyze data is essential, as social media is a powerful tool for gathering business insights.
A social media data analyst makes sense out of the raw numbers and reports and turns data into actionable insights. They regularly report on key performance indicators to help determine if your strategy is on track and performing as planned—and when it isn’t, they have the skills to make recommendations on how to bounce back. Perhaps most importantly, a data analyst can demonstrate the business impact of data and measure the return on your investment in social media.
The community manager
Monitoring, listening to and engaging with your social communities are a community manager’s raison d’être. A typical social media community manager is responsible for advocating for a brand’s audience and community on social. This person isn’t just friendly and engaging, they’re also strategic about building an audience.
Community managers on social media platforms are responsible for maintaining engagement in the comments, connecting with dedicated fans, and creating experiences that foster a strong connection to the brand.
Paula Perez
Community Manager, Oatly
This person is not a customer service representative, but they might connect customer service to community members who have reached out with product or service-related questions or concerns.
The paid media specialist
Organic and paid social tactics are akin to two complementary parts that make up a complete strategy, which is why they can and should support and enhance one another.
Whether you aim to boost brand awareness, welcome new followers or gather new leads, combining both efforts will deliver optimal results. It is helpful, however, to split organic and paid social media team roles. While your other social media marketers focus on the art of organic content, a teammate that specializes in paid digital media can optimize those efforts further and deepen the business impact of social.
The influencer marketing strategist
It is projected that the influencer marketing sector will hit a global value of $21.2 billion by 2023. This rapid expansion has led to the realization that the field, previously thought to be solely for retail companies, now has opportunities for various industries.
A great influencer marketing strategist will sift through the many influencers that might fit your brand to identify the few that will drive tangible ROI. They then work with those individuals to develop content that meets the needs of your audience and theirs.
Building relationships with influencers on behalf of a brand is inherently a high-touch process. When you consider that, alongside ongoing tasks like performance reporting and budget optimization, investing in a full-time professional for this role becomes a no-brainer.
The social customer care lead
Your social customer care lead serves as a conduit between your social media and customer service teams—an essential hire for businesses that experience a high volume of social customer service requests.
This individual is responsible for documenting social customer care processes, creating escalation management strategies and managing integrations between your social media and case management tools. They also provide much-needed support for customer service agents as they learn how to offer more brand-centric support across several social media channels.
Today, only 8% of social marketers believe themselves to be leaders in social customer care. Businesses that make this critical hire will secure a competitive advantage in their customer experience.
Three indications that it’s time to grow your social media team.
Hiring is a big decision, and recruiting is often a long and expensive process that takes time from multiple parties. That said, the costs of waiting can outweigh the costs of taking the leap. If you’re debating whether it’s time to post that job description, here are some key signs to look for:
1. Growth is stalling
Your output is consistent and you’re maintaining content quality, yet you’ve stopped seeing growth toward your goal metrics. Growth lulls can stem from a lot of root causes, but if your team is stuck in one you can’t shake, bandwidth may be to blame.
Expansion can be beneficial to your case.
Social is constantly evolving, and what it takes to meet your goals today might be a fraction of what it will take tomorrow. As consumer social media usage grows exponentially, establishing your brand as a market leader will only become more competitive.
To maintain momentum, marketers will have to spend even more time combing through social data for insights on what’s resonating with customers. If there’s no time, then expanding your social media department is your only path toward ensuring you have resources dedicated to both strategy and execution.
2. You’re missing engagement opportunities
Brands typically get 87 inbound interactions on social media daily. The larger your audience, the more engagement you’ll receive. It can be challenging to reply to every interaction, but it’s crucial to prioritize engagement. Failing to respond to your audience can make it difficult to establish long-term loyalty.
How expansion helps your case
There are several ways for customers to interact with your brand on any given channel. Aside from the standard Likes and comments, they can leave reviews, share support requests and tag brands in praise (or in worse cases, complaints).
To put it differently, social media is not a platform for one-sided communication. Successful brands on social media today understand the importance of two-way communication and focus on engaging with their audience. The latest Sprout Social Index™ Report reveals that 51% of consumers find brands that respond to customers on social media to be the most memorable. This engagement goes beyond just addressing complaints or inquiries – consumers expect brands to participate in various types of conversations in order to earn their loyalty.
3. No time for collaboration
Social media work inherently involves collaboration. Information from social media can guide marketing strategies, product development plans, competitor analysis, sales approaches, and more. Similarly, input from colleagues outside of the marketing department can broaden your viewpoint and help improve your communication and content choices.
How expansion helps your case
According to 93% of executives surveyed, social media data and insights will be a primary source of business intelligence for their companies in 2024. If your insights live in a marketing silo, your business risks losing sight of consumer interests.
Social collaboration can lead to significant changes when managers are able to dedicate time to sharing their reports and working together with other executives throughout the company.
How to future-proof your social media team
The field of social media is constantly changing and evolving, with new developments happening quickly. As it becomes more integrated into our daily routines, the potential for social media’s impact and complexity increases.
Maintaining your brand’s competitive edge and reaping the most rewards from social starts with investing in the professionals that help shape your brand perception across this new digital terrain. If you’re not sure what that looks like, here are three ways to future-proof your social media team.
1. Invest in your staff’s ongoing development
Maintaining an active presence on social media is a never-ending task that demands continuous clarification – whether it’s providing reasons for why a certain post may not be well-received on a particular platform or promoting the importance of the channel as a whole.
It’s no wonder 42% of marketers plan to stop working in social media within the next two years, and 20% want to change careers within the next 12 months. This poses a genuine threat to the industry, potentially leading to a scarcity of experienced talent.
Fostering opportunities for growth and career advancement is crucial for retaining social talent. Leaders may not be able to secure budget for immediate pay increases, but they can still support their teams by creating opportunities for skill expansion.
Setting aside funds for conference attendance (both virtual and in-person), as well as investing in professional development materials and classes, demonstrates a dedication to sustained growth and achievement. Furthermore, managers can guide their employees towards complimentary communities (such as Sprout Social’s Arboretum) for consistent chances to network with and gain knowledge from fellow professionals.
2. Identify more opportunities for cross-functional impact
Gold standard social media strategies shape cross-functional business decisions. There’s just one catch—achieving this level of impact becomes an uphill battle if your team is confined to a marketing bubble, isolated from potential collaborators.
Progressive businesses dismantle these barriers by distributing social data widely across their companies. This method guarantees that social intelligence can influence choices regarding customer, product, and business prospects. If social data stays restricted to your marketing department, you risk lagging behind.
Social teams need executive sponsorship to guide them as they realize the full potential of their strategies, and marketing leaders are uniquely positioned to fill this role. This does more than just lay the groundwork for cross-functional collaboration—it empowers teams to showcase the impact of social across various functions within an organization.
It’s a strategic move that secures buy-in for your team to wield their influence within a broader organizational framework.
3. Encourage experimentation
Advancements in technology are transforming the way we approach work in the social media industry. Previously, balancing consistent analysis of social media data with a packed schedule of content creation and engagement responsibilities seemed overwhelming. However, with the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning tools, teams can now increase their productivity without having to work longer hours.
AI tools help social media teams collate massive amounts of social listening data and transform it into actionable recommendations that elevate how social data is used across departments. According to the 2023 State of Social Media Report, a staggering 96% of business leaders believe that AI will play a pivotal role in significantly improving decision-making processes in the future.
Businesses are all-in on AI for social marketing. To make sure your brand isn’t left behind, it’s crucial to support your social media team in embracing the latest AI use cases in marketing.
This entails investing in tools that focus on AI development and working with business leaders to create considerate AI use policies. These policies protect your business and brand while also keeping your team ahead in the competitive market.
Now’s the time to invest in your dream social media team
There is no one-size-fits-all social media team structure, but with some vision, strategic planning and leadership buy-in, you can make it to your dream state. Now that you know how your team can benefit from additional resources, it’s time to design a role that will make an impact.
If you’re in need of inspiration, check out this guide to social media org charts. Inside, you’ll find insights from the social marketing leaders behind Kaplan, Cielo Talent and VMWare, as well as their takes on what future social media org charts will look like.
The post How to build your social media team for the future of marketing appeared first on Sprout Social.
Social media has become an essential part of any business’s marketing strategy. It’s a powerful tool that can be used to reach a large audience, build relationships, and increase brand awareness. However, managing social media accounts can be time-consuming and overwhelming. That’s why many businesses are turning to social media teams to help them manage their accounts and create long-term marketing success.
Creating a social media team is the first step to achieving long-term marketing success. A social media team is a group of people who are responsible for managing the company’s social media accounts. This team should include people with different skills and expertise, such as content creators, strategists, and analysts. The team should also have a leader who will be responsible for overseeing the team’s activities and ensuring that the team is working together effectively.
Once the team is in place, it’s important to create a social media strategy. This strategy should include goals, objectives, and tactics for achieving those goals. It should also include a timeline for when certain tasks need to be completed. The strategy should be regularly reviewed and updated to ensure that it is still relevant and effective.
The next step is to create content for the social media accounts. Content should be engaging, informative, and shareable. It should also be tailored to the target audience and should be consistent with the company’s brand message. The content should be posted regularly and should be monitored for engagement and reach.
Finally, it’s important to measure the success of the social media team’s efforts. This can be done by tracking metrics such as followers, likes, shares, comments, and website visits. These metrics can help the team identify what’s working and what needs to be improved.
Creating a social media team is an important step for any business that wants to achieve long-term marketing success. With the right team in place and a well-defined strategy, businesses can leverage the power of social media to reach their target audience and build relationships with them.
Source: sproutsocial.com
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