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August 28, 2011
How to Delegate Management of Your Social Media Marketing Campaign [DMA11]

Managing social media isn’t something that a company should relegate to just anyone. Whether you elect to put someone in charge that's high up on the food chain, or outsource those duties to a third party, the most important thing in managing social media is to ensure the competence of the party in charge. Here are a few things to consider before handing over control of your social media marketing efforts.

Picking an Insider
If you’re placing the management of your social media campaign in the hands of someone who isn’t a professional in social media marketing, it’s important that that individual knows your business inside and out. A lot of times, a lack of experience managing social media can be made up for by someone with a keen insight into the business being promoted. Don’t just settle on someone because they’re “young and hip” and know their way around Facebook. Experience in the industry counts.

Choosing the Right Third Party
Here are a few things to look for when outsourcing your social media marketing needs to an outside company.

• Ensure they’ve got plenty of experience managing social media. Again, don’t go with the “young and hip” factor. It takes a lot more than that to succeed at social media marketing.

• Look for the human factor. Work only with companies that will give you access to talk to a real-life person as opposed to a customer service department that you can only communicate with via email.

• Ask for references. Anyone experienced in managing social media should be able to provide plenty of examples of their success.

If you’re looking for a company that specializes in managing social media, you’ll have plenty of opportunity to get in face time with representatives of those companies by attending trade shows and industry conferences. DMA2011 Conference & Exhibition hosts hundreds of digital marketing vendors, many specializing in social media management. Check out how you can get involved by visiting www.dma11.org.

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