And it’s this latter user value, the increasingly important role of social media in e-commerce, that is leading entrepreneurs to prioritize social media marketing in their growth efforts. What this means, ultimately, is that the demand for skilled social media marketing managers is significant and growing.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the better part of a decade, you probably already well know what an impact social media has had on our daily lives. In a few short years, social media has become a primary means for friends and family to engage and reconnect, for professionals to network with peers and colleagues, and for consumers to find products and services they love.

In fact, social media marketing can be an ideal side hustle for would-be freelancers looking to expand their career horizons and cultivate a second revenue stream for themselves and their families.

This article provides the top three tips you need to establish a successful social media management side hustle.

What Is Social Media Management?

In a nutshell, social media management refers to a subsector of digital marketing in which diverse social media platforms are used to raise a company’s brand awareness and promote a business’s products and services. Social media can also be used to connect with prospective customers and to grow relationships with existing clients.

Social media marketing is typically one component of a company’s larger marketing platform. However, social media marketing’s importance to a business’s marketing efforts is likely to increase in coming years. Ever larger segments of the consumer market are turning first to social media to find the products they want or to engage with businesses that have caught their interest.

It’s estimated, for example, that nearly half of the total global population now routinely uses social media, with most users spending more than two hours on their preferred platforms each day on average.

A social media manager is someone who oversees a company’s social media marketing efforts. The goal, in general, is to help companies leverage the awesome power of social media to expand their market reach and build long and lucrative relationships with target audiences.

1.   Prepare to Wear Many Hats

Even if you’re only doing social media management as a side hustle, you’re going to need to be prepared to be flexible in your job duties. A social media manager’s role is both analytical and creative. They’re tasked with monitoring a company’s social media accounts, as well as the social media accounts of a company’s nearest rivals. They’re also charged with researching the customer base, understanding who visits a company’s social media pages, what they do there, and why.

All of these insights are then used by the social media manager to develop strategies for social media marketing teams to create effective online content. The manager’s mission is to design content that appeals to audiences and inspires them to engage with and support the company. In addition to research, the social media manager typically is responsible for planning, scheduling, and, often, creating content.

Depending on the size of a company’s digital marketing team, a social media manager will also often find themselves updating and responding to posts and communicating directly with clients. This might include, for example, responding to customer inquiries, comments, and even complaints. 

2.   Be Mindful of Legal and Tax Obligations

Even if your social media marketing work is a freelance gig that you do in your spare time, you are still likely to have a tax burden to meet. This is why it’s imperative for gig workers to understand their legal and tax obligations, keep meticulous records, and pay their taxes on their side hustle income in a timely manner.

3.   Unleash the Power of Social Media for Yourself

If you want to build a truly lucrative side hustle as a social media manager, then one of the best things you can do is unleash the power of social media to market your own services. This can be especially important for female entrepreneurs who are looking to get a foothold in the digital marketing sector. For women dreaming of that successful career as an independent freelancer, one of the best way to build their business is to go where the pros, and the customers, are. And that means that if you want to build a career in social media marketing, you should use social media to do it.

It’s also a good idea to connect with others in this line of work. So pay attention to the corporate social media accounts that you truly admire and reach out to their social media team. You may well find the perfect mentor to help you hone the skills you need to make your new side hustle a success that surpasses even your highest hopes!

The Takeaway

Social media is more than a pastime, more than a way to fritter away a dull afternoon. Now more than ever, social media can be a powerful conduit for professional success, a way to cultivate a thriving second revenue stream. And, best of all, it allows you to make money doing challenging, interesting, and rewarding work. The key is to be versatile, learn how to market yourself, and understand and address the legal and tax obligations of your gig income.

Author Bio: Katie Brenneman is a passionate writer specializing in lifestyle, business, education, and fitness-related content. When she isn’t writing, you can find her with her nose buried in a book or hiking with her dog, Charlie. To connect with Katie, you can follow her on Twitter

Tags: social media management, social media manager, social media marketing