Startups are still hiring the wrong people to handle social media programs.
(cross posted to LinkedIn)
Scenario: Startup idea gets going, has solid feedback and then a dump of cash from an angel or VC. Startup team gets excited. After hiring the top engineers and CTOs, startup realizes they need a marketing team to grow the user base - and hence make a decent ROI for the investors. When it comes to social media, startups then hire staffers with 1-2 years of social media experience. It's cheaper labor and an assumption that this one person can run an entire social media strategy with zero oversight or pushback.
Jump ahead six months. Investors are putting pressure on the startup execs and wonder why numbers are stagnant and growth isn't where it is supposed to be. Marketing execs turn to their small, solo, one-person social media team and pushes back on...EVERYTHING.
- 'No one is engaging with our posts.'
- 'Why aren't we getting more sales from these posts?'
- 'What is this social media person doing?'
- 'Why aren't we talking to XYZ people?'
- 'Did you reach out to these 10 people and sponsor their Instagram posts?'
I feel bad for the social media person. They may not have much experience using social media in a HOLISTIC way. Linking content to A/B testing to a website, along with syncing up content to match industry trends or those journalists who may be interested in the content. Then there is the disconnect with the internal sales team or other initiatives of the company and social media is in its own little black hole.
The next thing you know, the executive team and/or the investors think social media doesn't work and won't invest in the right tools and right strategies to grow things appropriately. The first six months' of patience is now exhausted and the social media program of said startup may be dead in the water. And a whole new team is brought in.
Social media is NOT a post and go away sort of deal. It is a constant 24/7 use of digital detective work that has the interest of the business AND consumers in mind. It is not a Monday - Friday, 8-5 deal. For most of the workforce managing social media today, responding back to a consumer at 10 am on a Saturday isn't in the cards.
But it should be.
The right system for a social media team is a combination of seasoned strategy, execution and mentorship. Teaching the next generation the best practices of digital marketing and, I don't know, how the web works is vital to any social media program doing well.
To all the new startups. Take a few steps back. Invest money in bringing the right team on board. Train them. Teach them. Sync all departments together.
Having one fish responsible for the entire ocean doesn't bode well - for anyone.