ShivaniRegarding the ever-growing demand for new professions focused around the web, it becomes easier to lose track of them all. But, with the increasing popularity of social media networks, one job, in particular, has established itself in recent years: the Community Manager. But, what precisely is a Community Manager? And what are the basic skills needed to excel?
For the role of a Community Manager, ruling social networks are at the heart of your know-how. Moreover, you must be familiar with the community’s requirements of the account and react efficiently to demands and feedback from followers.
As a brand representative, he has to act as a mediator between a community of customers, prospects, Internet users, and a brand or company. As such, they are accountable for taking actions to involve and build their community. Thus, the Community Manager plays a crucial role in a company’s overall presentation by establishing its reputation among web users.
The Community Manager’s skills are being reviewed in response to the ever-increasing demands of companies and brands. Creativity has become a priority, and web writing a new coveted skill. Considering that smartphones are highly prominent in net usage, it will be required to rely on the content creation adapted to this device.
Therefore, he will have to address “snackable content” by replying to a mobile audience ready to consume information on the go.
What we will cover in this post
- Definition of Community Manager
- What are the primary skills of the community manager?
1. Definition of Community Manager.
A community manager is a company face who is in charge of managing communications. In this role, you have to be digital-savvy as you will be responsible for everything when it comes to communications, social media, PR, content creations, and events, among many other things.
It is a Web 2.0 communications role, where online tools and in-person networking are incorporated to form relationships and build the company’s brand effectively.
2. What are the main skills of the community manager?
In the view of digital marketing, the most sought-after skills of a Community Manager are the management of a blog, expertise in social networks, community animation, web writing, and excellent knowledge of digital tools. Each platform solicits a set of required skills that are indispensable to the Community Manager. The fundamental obligation of any Community Manager is to learn the different social networks, such as:
- YouTube
- Snap
Though he can learn all these social networks and manage one or more communities on these channels, their digital skills and training remain diverse. Practical knowledge of the technical tools that are continually evolving lays the basis for strong digital communication. This includes:
- Knowledge of the brand within its community
- Web culture
- Preparing communication strategies for social networks (depending on position)
- Community management and activation
- Quality writing skills
- Content management
- SEO / SEM referencing (fundamental)
- Reviewing curating, and a working knowledge of the main tools for analyzing statistics and social marketing campaigns management
Considering the constant presence of information overload to which we are confronted daily, creativity serves as a real remedy against this phenomenon/syndrome of our digital age. Its all credit goes to editorial skills and creativity. His role isto produce digital communication that stands out from the clutter–an essential element for creating a unique and strong brand image. Since the key to many companies’ success is to enhance online visibility, it is crucial to be well-versed in the essentials of SEO and Google’s algorithms to optimize content as much as possible.
In professional life, the Community Manager’s job is usually confused with that of a Social Media Manager – not without reason, because the two work closely. However, while the Social Media Manager is mainly concerned with advertising activities and content management on social networks, the Community Manager concentrates only on the community.
Talented, empathetic, with a good understanding of software tools and social media networks, he could be referred to as the Swiss Army knife among the digital communication professions. The Internet is evolving, and so are consumers’ consumption patterns. The digital transformation of companies tells us how much web-related jobs are booming and how important it is to be trained in new tools and technologies.
Many companies are now utilizing social media and community development to improve their relations with their audience further. Professionals who can use their skills to keep the community updated are currently in demand, and they are called Community Managers.
Rounding it all up
A community manager is considered the ‘eyes and ears of your organization and the company’s voice. Your audience will love to communicate with someone who understands the value of the brand just like them, and a passionate Community Manager can do just the right job.
Communication with communities is not just limited to content delivery but should also include:
- Obtaining information.
- Engaging in specific initiatives.
- Building relations within communities.
- Strengthening the sense of identification with the company.
With that, you’ll have to evaluate the qualifications of your Community Manager thoughtfully.
