Hiring someone to manage your business's social media sounds pretty straightforward until you actually start looking. There are freelancers, marketing agencies, content creators, and social media managers, all offering slightly different services at very different price points.
And if you're a business in Red Deer or Central Alberta, figuring out who is the right fit can feel like another job on top of everything else you're already doing.
The truth is, not every social media manager offers the same level of support. Some focus on creating content, others handle scheduling and posting, and some take care of everything from strategy to analytics.
Before you sign a contract, here are five things I'd recommend looking into.
1. Make sure you're hiring someone who understands strategy, not just posting.
There's a big difference between someone who can make a nice Instagram graphic and someone who knows what your business should actually be talking about.
Before hiring a social media manager, ask how they develop their content strategy. Do they take time to understand your business, your customers, and your goals? Or are they simply going to create a calendar of posts and hope for the best?
At House of Monday, strategy is where we start. Before creating content, we want to understand what the business is working toward, what makes it different, and what its audience needs to know.
Because the goal isn't just to keep your accounts active. It's to make sure the content you're sharing has a purpose.
2. Get really clear on what's included in the monthly fee.
This is probably one of the biggest things I'd encourage businesses to pay attention to.
Two social media management packages might have similar prices but include completely different services.
One might cover captions, graphics, and scheduling, while another includes strategy, content creation, community management, analytics, and monthly planning calls.
Neither is necessarily better. It depends on what your business needs.
Before signing anything, make sure you understand who's responsible for creating photos and videos, how many posts are included, whether someone will respond to comments and messages, and what happens when you need something outside the regular scope.
The last thing you want is to hire someone to take social media off your plate, only to discover you're still responsible for coming up with all the ideas and supplying every piece of content.
3. Look for experience that goes beyond one type of business.
I don't think a social media manager needs to have worked in your exact industry to do a great job. But I do think they should be able to show you how they approach different audiences, goals, and types of content.
At House of Monday, we've worked with businesses and organizations across a wide range of industries, including retail, wellness, aviation, agriculture, and research.
And that's taught us something important: what works for one business isn't necessarily going to work for another.
A family-owned flour mill needs a very different content strategy than a wellness clinic. The questions customers are asking, the information they need, and the decisions they're making are completely different.
I'd look for someone who can explain why they made certain content decisions, not just show you a portfolio of nice-looking posts.
4. Ask what communication and collaboration actually look like.
When you're outsourcing your social media, you're trusting someone to represent your business online. That's a pretty big deal.
You should know how often you'll communicate, how content gets approved, how far in advance posts are planned, and what happens when something changes unexpectedly.
For example, at House of Monday, we use a shared content calendar where clients can review and approve upcoming posts. We also have regular check-ins and a place for clients to share ideas, updates, and things happening behind the scenes.
That way, our clients aren't wondering what's being posted or chasing us down for updates.
The right social media manager should feel like an extension of your team, not another person you have to constantly follow up with.
5. Find out how they measure success.
If a social media manager promises to get you thousands of followers or make your business go viral, I'd have a few questions.
Views, likes, and follower growth can be useful metrics, but they don't tell the whole story.
Depending on your business, success might look like more people visiting your website, increased awareness in your local community, more inquiries, or customers having a better understanding of your products and services.
Ask what kind of reporting you'll receive and how that information will influence the content being created.
At House of Monday, we review performance regularly and use what we're learning to make recommendations moving forward. Because there's not much point in collecting analytics if we're not actually doing anything with them.
One more thing: make sure you actually like working with them.
This might sound obvious, but I think it's worth mentioning.
You're going to be communicating with this person regularly. They'll be asking questions about your business, working with your team, and representing your brand to your customers.
You should feel comfortable sharing ideas, asking questions, and having honest conversations about what's working and what isn't.
And you should feel confident that they understand your business well enough to make decisions on your behalf.
A good working relationship makes everything easier, especially when you're trusting someone with a big part of your marketing.
Looking for a Social Media Manager in Red Deer or Central Alberta?
I'm Mia, the founder of House of Monday, a boutique marketing studio based in Innisfail, Alberta. We provide social media management, content strategy, and content creation for businesses throughout Red Deer, Olds, Sylvan Lake, Blackfalds, Calgary, and beyond.
Whether you're ready to hand over your social media completely or just need some help with content creation and planning, we'd love to hear what you're working on.
Explore our social media management services or get in touch to see if we're a good fit.