Tarun Gupta

Finding the Right Fit: How to Choose a Social Media Consultant

Tarun Gupta | Nov 29th, 2013 | Social Media Marketing
Social Media Specialization

If you have an online presence, especially over social media, you need a social media consultant to manage your social profile across the social networks. A consultant is a person who represents your voice, brand image, reputation, and brand and visitor traffic to your website. Choosing the right Social Media Marketing Consultant isn't a hard nut to crack if you are ready with a questionnaire to ask your potential candidate. The article constitutes some of the pertinent questions that may be the criteria for your selection.

What To Look For In Social Media Consultants When Hire

Here are a few quick points that may help you shortlist a social media consultant to intensify your social media aspirations. Let's take them one by one in detail.

Their Own Social Network:

A good consultant is a person who has a solid periphery of the social network. Only an actively engaged social media geek can help you out in your endeavors. If someone can't market himself in the domain how can he do the same for your business? A consultant should be well-versed with all available social networks, their pros and cons, and above all the engagement behavior needed to handle these platforms.

Their Connections In The Industry:

Ideally, there are some primary social networks where engagement does matter the most. While hiring the consultant, check how they are connected with the network. Observe their Facebook Timeline and list of their Twitter followers to find the number of likes on their feeds and the number of re-tweets against their tweets. It will unlock several answers related to the consultant's viability in the marketplace.

Understanding of The Market:

Make sure that the social media consultant you hire understands your market well. Every market has its specific targets, specific services to expand and unique audience groups to get engaged with. Ask your consultant how well he is familiar with your industry and its trends. Request him to explore significant documents he has written for your industry in the recent past and how well these documents have been accepted/appreciated by the audience.

Ask Their Previous Clients:

Consultants having good knowledge of the industry and skill set will willingly share the names of the clients they worked for. Request them to show the detailed list of clients, the nature of the job performed, and the results offered. For instance, inquire the consultant about the Facebook Marketing Strategies he ever planned for his previous clients. If necessary you can cross-check the credentials with the actual clients. It will help you to measure the potential of the candidate you hire.

Which Tools They Use To Measure Statistics:

For a social media professional, it is crucial to have access to various Analytics and Tools to quantify metrics. Measuring only the 'likes', 'tweets', and shares won't yield good results but several other precise measurements should also be there to analyze and strengthen the conversion bottom line. Ask your consultant about the custom tracking tools he uses. You should also inquire what will be his game plan to monitor and improve the matrices.

Ask For Social Media Specialization:

As mentioned above, every social network has its nature of engagement, promotion, and expansion. This is why you must ask your consultant about the social network he has specialized in. For instance, if you are a professional to promote your page on sites like Pinterest, there is no need to hire one who has the upper hand in Twitter and Facebook promotion. Only a specialized social media technocrat can understand your social media needs better.


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