Is Social Media Specialist a Good Career?

Social Media Specialist is a very good career, but like any job, it’s not necessarily for everybody.

If you enjoy sharing content and building and growing a community, social media is a great space. There are always new experiments to run, new algorithms to master, and new trends to try to incorporate into your brand’s story.

Keep in mind this role necessitates that you spend a huge chunk of your time on social media channels like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and potentially many more. For those who are naturally inclined to use social media, this is the ideal position to be in. However, it can be overwhelming to be fully immersed in the virtual world of social, and many find themselves having to monitor their screen time to ensure a healthy work-life balance.

There’s the potential for a lot of fun interactions and engagement on social media. If a post goes viral or if you grow a large enough audience to become an influencer in your industry, you have the opportunity to have an impact on a lot of people and trends. You’ll also have the opportunity to experiment with your more creative side in making images, writing copy, and looking for other ways to engage with your audience. Of course, this also comes with the pressure of impressing potentially hundreds of thousands of followers.

As a Social Media Specialist, you'll also have a lot of room for growth within the marketing industry. The average Social Media Specialist makes $48,000 and can make as much as $66,000. Once you’ve transitioned into a more experienced managerial position or one that crosses marketing and communications, you can make between $63,000 and $97,000. There’s also data to suggest that salary typically steadily increases as you move up in your career.

Is Social Media Marketing in Demand?

Demand for social media marketing is soaring across the country, as companies have mostly discovered the many benefits of using cost-effective, local internet marketing tactics on social media sites. Platforms such as YouTube, Reddit, and Facebook are helping companies communicate directly with their core consumer base, attract new customers, and build long-lasting relationships with their customers.

Marketers and company owners from a wide variety of industries are working on new strategies to incorporate social media into their daily business tasks. Bootcamps and universities are launching new educational programs around social media marketing. Graduates are being scooped up quickly; from 2011 to 2016, social media and other digital marketing roles grew 30 percent faster than overall marketing postings.

According to McKinley, there's high demand and low supply for skilled Social Media Marketers. Their report shared that by 2018 over half of all marketing hires will be Digital Specialists, with content and digital advertising being the most sought-after areas of specialization. Although the skills gap in digital marketing is apparent in countries around the world, it is being felt more severely in some areas than others. According to McKinely’s report, the digital marketing skills in in highest demand are:

• Content strategy
• Digital project management
• Data and analytics
• Brand marketers
• Search engine optimization
• Website design and development
• E-commerce