How to Become a Freelance Social Media Manager

Being a social media manager is a role that involves managing social media profiles for businesses.

As a social media manager (SMM) you could be working for small businesses, or large ones, or anything in between.

The clients you work for and the profiles you manage depend on your position, what you offer, and what kind of package you’ve set up with the client.

I worked as a Social Media Manager for a short time before realizing that it wasn’t for me. Now, as a writer and career coach, I will show you:

• how to get into social media management as a career
• how to tell if it’s the right job for you
• how to market yourself properly so you get clients! (as someone who hires freelancers, I can see both sides of the coin)

If you’re interested in this exciting way to earn an income (as it can be fully remote, and can be done as either a side hustle or full-time job) then read on about how to get started!

Steps to Becoming a Freelance Social Media Manager

1. Choose a certain niche that you will focus on

Most professional social media managers have a niche of certain businesses that they help. Having a background in those niches helps them market and engage with those audiences.

Some niches are for example, health and wellness, beauty, fashion, parenting, lifestyle, travel, finance and business, sports, etc.

The niches you focus on should align with your background, interests and knowledge so that you can market to people who are also interested in those topics.

All you need to do at this point is keep your niche in mind.

2. Learn the important social media management skills

There are several skills that are at play when you’re managing a business’s social media:

• Copywriting – many social posts require decent quality, engaging writing that often includes a call to action
• Artistic design and video/photo editing – Creating graphics, reels, and photo editing
• Organization – Responding to/answering comments and questions
• Expert knowledge of business engagement on the platform you’re working on

Degrees that teach you all of the above (often called ‘Digital Marketing’) do exist, but you don’t necessarily need a degree to work as a social media manager, especially not a freelance one

I recommend improving your skills at all of the above – copywriting, graphic design (using tools like Canva), and social media platform management and engagement. You can do this by:

• Reading some books
• Diving into some YouTube videos
• Familiarizing yourself with the platform(s) of your choice that you’ll specilize in

Pro Tip: The social media platform(s) that you specialize in depend on what your chosen niches are. For example, people interested in sports, business and finance tend to be more active on social media platforms than people who are more into beauty, travel or health and wellness. This Sprout Social article gives you an idea of who hangs out where.

Bonus: Qualify (if necessary)

As I said, you don’t necessarily need a formal post-secondary degree in digital marketing. It helps, but you don’t need it. In the end, people hire people who they trust and feel confident in to run their social media profiles.

I don’t have any formal background in marketing, and I still found clients.

But, it does help to get some training – even if it’s free training. I recommend reading books, taking online courses (free and/or paid) ones.

The social media management course I took no longer exists, but here are some other excellent resources for really honing your skill:

• The Ultimate Sales Letter (book)- I read many marketing and copywriting books, this was one of them. It helps to get really good at
• Beginner’s Video for Social Media Management Great 15-minute YouTube video to watch with good advice for beginners in social media management
• My Guide to Effective Social Media Management – my article of best practices for social media management

3. Make yourself available for work

The next thing to do is to decide and clarify what your work hours and availability will be. Think of how many hours you realistically want to be doing this each week.

As I mentioned, being an SMM can be either be:

• an employed position with a full salary and benefits (usually at large companies)
• a freelance gig (often for small to medium-sized businesses)

So, if you’re looking to do this as a side income, then clarify to yourself (so that you can later to potential clients) what your ‘office hours’ are. How can they reach you, and between what hours are you open to talk to them, or get wor done.

4. Create social media pages for your social media management business

Having social media pages for your social media management business is a must – and how you run those pages shows (potential clients) how well you’ll manage and care for their pages.

Pro Tip: Part of what most people hiring you as a social media manager want to see is that you can engage your audience and grow a following. Do this in a genuine, authentic way (do not buy bot followers.) Potential clients want to see that you’re genuine and really know what you’re doing. Read up on tips to grow an organic social media following, depending on the platform and your niche

5. Market, market, market yourself

Here’s the part where I really struggled with at becoming a social media manager – the marketing part.

Marketing yourself properly can make or break your success. You need to put yourself out there, and really believe in yourself.

If believing in yourself and your abilities, and having the confidence to show up and put yourself out there, is a problem for you, then please work on this! You can’t succeed as a freelancer without clearing these blocks. Check out self-development books that I recommend, self-love and acceptance books (which increase confidence) or books on money mindset

You can market yourself in a few different ways:

• Online. Leverage your social media skills by following small businesses, growing a following, posting tips and content so that people start to trust you as an expert in the field
• In person. Reach out to small businesses in your area to pitch your services. Maybe your favourite bakery, or the home daycare in your community would like help with their own digital marketing
• You can also set up profiles on Fiverr, and Upwork. These have become a bit oversaturated, and have many people charging very cheap, but its still possible to find clients on there. Check what people are already making money from social media management services

6. (Bonus) Create a website

You don’t have to have a website as a social media manager, but there are a few benefits to having one:

• It looks professional
• Allows clients to easily browse your packages and prices
• It shows that you were techy enough to build a website

Overall, having a website helps you stand out and shows that you’re not just a rando – you’re serious, and people can trust you.

My freelance social media management business was the first website I ever made, and I was so proud of myself. I built it on Wix using a set-up video showing me how to build it.

Is Being a Social Media Manager Right For You?

Being a freelance social media manager has a lot of perks, but it’s important to be aware of both the pros and cons before you invest a bunch of time and money in getting started.

Final Thoughts on Becoming a Freelance Social Media Manager

I hope that this article on getting set up as a freelance social media manager has been helpful to you. I continue to do social media management, but for my own business rather than for other people. I think that the tips here are enough to get you started on the path to a potentially rewarding freelance career that you can do from home