One of the most important and imperative roles for any community is a community manager. A community manager is someone who oversees and manages an online or offline community, engaging with members to keep them engaged, providing support, and addressing problems when they arise.

Community managers are in high demand these days as more companies recognize the importance of social media engagement and community development. Learning about the community manager role and their primary responsibilities is a great first step in hiring the right one for your community.

What exactly is a community manager, and how to hire them? Here, we’ll look at what a community manager does and how to recruit and hire one.

What is a Community Manager?

In general, a community manager is someone who connects and contributes with individuals in a community both online and in person. They cultivate connections and retain members by maintaining them.

The responsibilities of community managers can vary depending on the company or organization they work for, but typically they are responsible for developing and managing social media campaigns, moderating online communities, organizing events, and engaging with customers and followers.

Community management is important because it allows businesses to connect with their customers in a more personal way, build loyalty among customers, get feedback from customers, and create brand advocates.

What does a community manager do?

Some of their primary responsibilities include:

• Creating and running successful social media campaigns that are in line with a company’s marketing plans is an important part of digital marketing.
• Manage media content such as images, video, and blog posts
• Develop community engagement plans including creating contests, running surveys and polls, and moderating discussions
• Generate new leads through community involvement
• Measure the success of social media campaigns and community management efforts using analytics tools
• Monitoring for any mention of the brand on social media, as well as responding to consumers or prospective customers in a timely manner
• Collaborating closely with the marketing and PR departments to ensure brand consistency.
• Working with clients, prospective customers, and industry experts is a great way to build relationships.

Why is a community manager important?

Community management is important because it allows businesses to connect with their customers and prospects on a one-to-one basis.

In today’s digital age, more and more people are turning to social media and online communities to get information about products and services.

A community manager can help foster these relationships by creating engaging content, monitoring feedback, and responding promptly to inquiries.

Additionally, community management helps businesses identify potential leads and measure the success of their social media campaigns.

What skills do a community manager need?

In order to be successful, a community manager must have the correct personality and open attitude. It all boils down to communication, whether it’s online or in-person; a community manager must be well-spoken.

Here are 10 skills every community manager must-have:

Communication Skills

A community manager must have an excellent communication skill set. They must be able to communicate with people of all levels, both online and in person.

Writing Skills

Community managers are often responsible for drafting blog posts, creating social media content, and responding to customer feedback. Excellent writing skills are a must-have for this role.

Organizational Skills

Community managers are juggling many tasks at once and must be able to stay organized in order to keep track of it all. They need to be well-versed in using various software programs as well.

Networking Skills

A community manager is the face of the company and must develop relationships with customers, partners, bloggers, etc. They should have excellent networking skills in order to foster these relationships.

Passion for Social Media

Community managers must be passionate about social media and the latest trends. They need to be constantly learning in order to stay ahead of the curve and provide valuable insights to their company.

Public Speaking Skills

Many community managers’ roles require presenting at live events or webinars. Community managers must have excellent public speaking skills in order to engage with an audience.

Customer Service Skills

Community managers are often the first point of contact for customers who have issues or questions. They must have strong customer service skills in order to resolve any issues that may arise.

Analytical Skills

Community managers should be able to generate and interpret important metrics in order to gain insight into a brand’s community health. They must be able to understand both qualitative and quantitative project data.

Creative Problem Solving

One of the community manager’s primary responsibilities is solving problems for their community members, which often requires quick thinking and creative problem-solving skills.

Business Development Skills

The community managers should have some business development skills in order to help community members achieve their goals. This includes helping community members improve their relationship with the brand, increasing community members’ revenues, and improving community retention rates.

Community manager requirements

Here’s what a community manager needs to have in order to be successful in this role:

• A bachelor’s degree in communication, English, journalism, marketing, or a closely related discipline is required.
• They’ll need to have some experience working with Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube.
• Proficient in Google Analytics.
• At least two years of experience managing social media platforms is required.
• Strong communication and writing abilities are a must.
• Keep up with marketing trends and techniques.
• Must have good time management skills.
• Can handle multiple projects at once.
• Can work well under pressure with short deadlines or in a fast-paced environment.
• Comfortable working on their own but also able to collaborate effectively with others, especially team members and clients.
• Knowledge of community management software (Hootsuite, Tailwind) is helpful for this position.
• The ability to work within guidelines set by the company they are representing is needed as community managers can often be seen as ambassadors for that brand or organization online.

How much does a community manager make?

Community managers can earn a variety of salaries depending on their level of experience and what company they work for. According to Glassdoor, community manager salaries range from $39,000 to $84,000.

Example: The average salary for a Community Manager in Los Angeles is around $74,000 plus a bonus.

As community management becomes more important for businesses, the demand for community managers will continue to grow, resulting in higher salaries for those with the right skills and experience.

How to recruit and hire a community manager?

It’s difficult to find and recruit a community manager. It takes time and dedication to locate the right candidate.

You’re looking for community managers who can not only cultivate community but also have business acumen, understand how social media works and be excited about your product.

One way to find qualified community managers is to post a job listing on niche jobs board websites like Mediabistro, CMX Hub, and Community Hub. When reviewing applications, be sure to look for candidates with a history of community engagement, whether it’s through social media, blogging, event planning, or customer service.

Join online social media forum sites like subReddit (r/CommunityManager) or Product Hunt (Community Building) to find community managers and community manager candidates.

Another way to identify potential community manager candidates is by attending live events, such as conferences and meetups. Talk to the people you meet there and ask if they have any experience in community management. You may also want to consider hiring a consultant who can help you develop and implement a community strategy.

Key Takeaways

Hiring the ideal applicant takes time and work, and finding a top Community Manager is no exception. With the world going online and social, especially in light of the pandemic, when mom-and-pops must go online to survive, community managers are in great demand.

So whether you’re in the market to fill a position or to just understand community management better, hopefully, this overview gives you what you need.