Thursday, February 14, 2013

Social Media vs Community Manager

I've come across my fair share of job postings lately that confuse the difference between a Social Media Manager and a Community Manager. If you're hiring or applying for one or the other, it is helpful to know the difference between the two. So, what IS the difference?


Social Media Manager

A Social Media Manager manages social media campaigns and platforms, such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Their responsibilities include: setting up social media pages, managing engagement on those pages, curating, creating and publishing posts on all social media pages, providing analytics on all social media efforts, developing and delivering comprehensive social media marketing plans (including influencer programs, engagement strategies,content calendars, editorial calendars, etc), customer support on all consumer-facing social media pages, establishing best practices and training, if needed, for all platforms, and any and all actions related to social media efforts for a brand(s).

Community Manager

A Community Manager manages an already established online community composed of members, usually centered around a common interest like interior design/home decor (Houzz), photography (Instagram) or many different things (Pinterest). Their responsibilities include: outreach to increase membership, creating a content plan and publishing content for the online community, becoming an active and highly involved member of the community, ensuring that all community members follow the community's guidelines for behavior and content, communicating the needs and feedback of the members to other departments such as the tech team, CEO, and Customer Relations department, acting as an online babysitter of sorts, editing content when necessary, submitting bugs and spam reports, and all actions related to maintaining the online community as dictated by the CEO or their direct supervisor.

Social Media Community Manager

At times, these two combine to be listed as a Social Media Community Manager. After all, both Instagram and Pinterest are social media pages that can (and should) be leveraged to benefit brand awareness. What happens once you research, develop, and establish these social media platforms, should you just turn away? What happens if online communities become social media must-haves? There are times when you are going to need both, especially if you're a start-up. I think it's even more accurate to add an and in there, so it reads Social Media and Community Manager.


I hope this helps to clear up some confusion. When you're posting a job listing, now you'll know if you're looking for a Social Media Manager, a Community Manager or both. You'll be able to save time going through resumes and interviews with people that don't have the qualifications specific to your needs.

If I left out anything or if you have any questions, please feel free to leave comments and/or questions below in the comments!