Look at Ability and Track Records when Considering Social Media Staff
Tips in Considering New Graduates for Social Media Positions
You’re ready to venture into social media but don’t know enough to become successful at it. You look over a list of candidates for the job and considered hiring someone fresh out of college to man the post. After all, the younger generation are more savvy when it comes to social networking. In fact, you’ve witnessed how your teenage nephews and nieces adeptly handle three personal social accounts simultaneously. Before you give job offers for the newly grads, are you really sure they’re capable enough to handle your social media campaigns?
1. Do they have the appropriate skills?
This should be your first concern. Do they have the skills you need to help make your social media campaigns take off and become successful? Do they have good oral and written communication skills? Do they have the proper work attitude? Determine whether your applicants have the qualities you seek so you will not regret hiring them. Assess whether they would be capable of handling corporate social media accounts as they do when managing their personal accounts in Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks.
2. Do they have the experience?
New graduates need to be guided on what sort of content they should be posting. It is important to have someone check the articles, pictures and videos they made before posting them on the company web page. This is to ensure that the content meets your requirements and will reflect well on your online image. Other than that, you also have to make clear that their friends cannot post personal messages on your company page. Posts of this nature make your page look unprofessional.
3. They may not fit in with the work atmosphere.
When assessing new graduates for a position in your company, it is important to determine whether they’ll be able to handle working in your particular work environment. For example, you have a fast-paced office atmosphere that requires everyone to quickly react to emergency work situations. Do you think your young candidate will be up to this type of surroundings? Make sure they’re a good fit for the environment, not just for the job. They may pass the qualifications, but they might not have the personality suited for the post. A highly-strung person will easily get bored in a quiet office while a reserved individual will find it hard to adjust to an active group.
4. They will need to be supervised.
Yes, new graduates need to be supervised to ensure they’re able to adjust well. You or a colleague will have to be available to answer their questions. They may have to be observed to ensure they understand how the work is done so mistakes will occur less often. They should also be advised that personal browsing and managing their personal social accounts are not allowed. Some new graduates have to be reminded because they have had more freedom in social networking while doing their school work.
5. On-the-job training is necessary.
It is advisable to make your new hires (and new graduates to boot) to observe before they do actual work. Once they get a feel of how things are done, make them do some exercises that will test how they understood your instructions. This will gauge their ability to understand and follow directions, as well as test their predilection for hard work. You can also give them a ‘dry run’ before starting formal hiring procedures to see how they will cope with the job. Attitude should also be checked to see whether they’re mature enough to be productive employees who’ll stay in the long run.
6. Evaluate their technical skills.
Social media does not only involve handling content, but also entails analyzing production numbers, analytics, conversion rates and more. Determine their knowledge and skills in these aspects to fully grasp whether they would be fit in other areas of social media work as well. It would be better to hire people who have a background in handling such areas so they can assist you in concluding whether your social media campaigns are efficiently working or not. They should know how to improve campaigns and make them do well.
7. Crisis management skills should also be taken into account.
There may come a time when your company has to deal with a public relations nightmare. Make sure your social media manager and staff can handle the job and turn the situation around. Having a capable team who can think of ways to prevent PR problems many steps ahead saves you a lot of trouble.
8. Make sure you can access all your company’s social networking accounts.
Letting your company pages be managed alone without knowing many details about it can result to social media nightmare. Ensure that you’re in touch with the process so you’re not caught surprised and ignorant of what went on to cause a PR disaster. Knowing the passwords to those accounts will also allow you to monitor the content, analytics, and other minute information about your social media campaigns.
The Bottom Line
Hiring new graduates is not necessarily a bad thing. They give new blood to your workplace and can make the office exciting and lively. Gauge their skills, attitude and personalities just like you do with the older applicants. It also helps to remember that not all new graduates are the same. Some are really capable and equipped with a healthy attitude for work, while others need to develop their skills and cultivate a more mature manner. Consider these tips before hiring to ensure you’re getting a new graduate who will be great to work with.
Reference: