Who Should Be In Charge of Social Media At Your Nonprofit Organization?

By Jordan Lappin

Within the last five to ten years, social media has become fully integrated into advertising, marketing strategies, and driving sales. If you read our blog from last week, you now understand the value of social media for your nonprofit organization. Social media is a powerful tool that has the capacity to scale your nonprofit to new heights - and the best part about it is that it’s free! Having a strong social media presence has enabled Triangle Cares to reach over 200% more people each month since our rebranding. This now leads to the question: Who should be in charge of social media at your nonprofit organization? 
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The ideal social media manager is multifaceted: creative, a story teller, an excellent writer, video editor, and maybe even a graphic designer. This person also plays an important role as the spokesperson of your nonprofit organization for the digital world. Today, many people use social media as a means of communication through direct messaging. Thus, your social media manager acts as a “facilitator of sales” as they are talking to potential donors and volunteers on your platforms. Your social media manager also acts as a data analyst - this person has to observe social media trends, create content accordingly, and analyze performance data. 
Finding an individual that is capable of all of these characteristics can be daunting. And the truth is - you probably are not going to find this seemingly perfect “unicorn”. 

Here are three characteristics we think you should hone in on when hiring your next social media manager:

1. Tech Savvy - First and foremost, you should look for someone that is tech savvy. Technology is constantly evolving, so it is important to find someone that is skilled when it comes to operating on different platforms and devices. You should also look for someone that is proficient in creating digital content on platforms like Canva and Photoshop along with filming and editing videos! 
2. Creative - Creativity is key when it comes to social media. You should look for someone who thinks outside the box. Posts on social media can be very repetitive - find someone that can create content that will give your organization an edge.  
3. Strategic - What most people do not understand about social media is that it is very strategic - there are strategies that you can employ to increase the likelihood of engagement, growth, and positive feedback. Find someone who is clever and tactical! This person will have a shot at mastering the complex algorithm. 

A question that we often get asked is who exactly should you employ as your social media manager - should you tag this role onto the responsibilities of someone already on your team? Or should you hire someone specifically for this role? 

Because most nonprofits operate on a tight budget, many organizations do not have the means to hire someone solely as the social media manager. Tasking the director of outreach or marketing with the role of social media is a great alternative to making sure that you are taking advantage of all that social media has to offer, while also operating within your financial means. (Just make sure that this is not asking too much of them!)  Individuals in these roles typically make out as very successful social media managers. However, if your nonprofit does have the means to employ a full-time social media manager, we think this is ideal.