So often I go into a meeting with a potential client and one of two things happen: They have no idea what they are looking for or they have a long list based on the latest trends. Both are not great ways to go. Why? It’s letting others set the plan for your social media consultant instead of your organization.
If you are ready to set the agenda, then let’s take a look at some factors that define what you need in a social media consultant.
What assets you have
The fact is that you have likely been producing something prior to starting your search for a social media consultant. It doesn’t matter what the topics were. What does matter is what types of content you have been producing.
Every social media consultant tends to specialize in a type of content. So starting off with knowing what types of content you can produce in-house efficiently will give you an idea of what types you need someone else to create. Even if you don’t want to regularly be creating content, this is important. You already have certain types of content, and you want your social media consultant to build up what you don’t have.
Yes, it’s great to have a well-rounded social media consultant, but no one is truly well-rounded. Make sure their content skills are complementary to yours.
What level of knowledge
I’ve worked in several industries. My trademark is that I can learn, and I can learn quickly. But even for me, there is a limit.
Look at what your industry is and the level of your audience. If you are catering to medical doctors who want to receive high level posts, then you need to find someone who has the ability to speak at that level. Someone who tends to move in consumer-facing industries just won’t be able to give them what they want and need.
Or it could even be that your audience is multilingual and you need to find someone who is also multilingual. Whatever it is, if you need your social media consultant to have some specialized skills, make sure you are looking for that.
Length of time
How long do you plan on having your social media consultant?
The majority of my clients are long-term, and for me, that’s longer than two years. If you are looking for long-term, then you want someone with more of a strategic mind that is not necessarily fully trend-focused. They’re looking at the entirety of the puzzle and are able to build the puzzle pieces as they go.
On the other hand, if you are looking at someone for the short-term, you’re looking for a very different person. You’re looking for someone who produces quickly, and it may not necessarily be strategic. They may be there to get you started. They may be there to produce content that you can either build on or just that you can use year-round.
So keep in mind how long you want to work with this person as it will have a major effect on the type of person you should be looking for.
Your knowledge of social media
This one is a hard one, and I have found that it is rare that anyone can truly do this. But you need to give a truthful answer to how much social media knowledge you have.
If you have a great understanding of it and are consistently reading social media news, you need a lower level person who will follow a strategy and create great content within that strategy. I’ve only had two clients who really fit this bill in my career. And a big part of the reason why they were able to keep up with social media news was because I sent it to them. This is not to say that it’s not possible. It’s just not what I usually get hired for.
If you have a higher level marketing understand but don’t follow social media that closely, then you need someone who can produce a social media strategy that will support your marketing strategy. This is my favorite kind of client. They know what they don’t know, and I can create something that will complement what they already know they need.
The last category is someone who doesn’t have much of a marketing understanding, let alone a social media marketing understanding. So this requires someone who can build everything from scratch. When I get clients who are in this category, they rarely have a true brand style guide. They rarely know their keywords. And they rarely have any kind of marketing strategy. And creating all of this and putting it into action requires someone with a much higher level of marketing understanding than your typical social media consultant. Hence why this typically requires a more expensive consultant.
Knowing what’s done and what your ability is to do what’s not done can truly make sure you get the right kind of social media consultant in your organization. Otherwise you might end up with someone who doesn’t have enough knowledge to do it the right way.
A social media consultant who works with you
A very important part of finding the right social media consultant is knowing how you work. What kind of working relationship would be right for you and what styles will complement how you do things. Finding someone with some soft skills that work with your own soft skills is just as important as those hard skills.
In the end, you are such a huge part of finding the right person. Doing a full inventory of who you are as a person and your abilities will tell you almost everything you need about what you should be looking for in a social media consultant. If you start with an honest inventory, you will find that right person.
How do you define the traits you need in a social media consultant?