How much would you pay for someone to manage your company's social media?
Hey everyone, I've got a question about your personal opinion on a reasonable price point for social media management. I know most companies do this internally but let's pretend you want to pay an agency or social media expert to handle it for you (please note I said expert, not a teenager who plays on Facebook all day).
If you paid someone to do this, let's say they would manage two accounts,Facebook and Twitter, and would post up to ten posts per day (mostly on Twitter).
The social media manager would also respond to any inquiries by customers, media, etc. within a max of 12 hours (excluding holidays and weekends -- then it may be a max of 48 hours). This person would also make a point of engaging with the online community each day; so if it's a brand for baby toys, then the social media manager would interact with mommy bloggers at least 1-2x/day. So there is a large marketing component of this service as well.
Overall we're talking about roughly 5-6 hours of work each week. So if you wanted to pay someone to do all of that -- how much would you consider a reasonable rate per month? What price would be "absolutely worth it" and what price would be "definitely not worth it?"
There's no right or wrong answer, just your opinion. Please and thanks for your help!
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Nov 16, 2015
I think social media or event marketing all plays a great role in introducing you to the target market and for the marketing only we should go for selecting right event planner who can help you to make aware of audience about your establishments. https://vimeo.com/144840919
Jun 23, 2014
It depends on the results you want. $70/hr is reasonable for a proven talent that can write well and manage this important role. Do not hire a beginner.
Jun 5, 2014
I think the cost would be low end $50 up to $150 or so an hour. Low end basically $300 ($250 would pay a bill for freelancer) - $500 /mo. to over $1,000/mo. In my opinion, these would be figures for a small business. Mid - Large Companies would probably command higher rates per industry and market.
Things to keep in mind:
You know "you get what you pay for"; but make sure you don’t pay for a company or brand name. Pay for results and knowledge. Do your homework first.
• See if they are an authority in Social Media. You don't have to have 5,000 Likes on Facebook or 10,000 followers @Twitter to know Social Media Marketing. Don’t let them hit you with buzz words and blow smoke. If they can’t keep it simple and help you understand the process, they don’t really understand internet marketing.
• Negotiate and ask for proof. If they want you to spend $1K a month on Social Media Marketing, make them prove that it’s a good investment and let then earn it. It's all about your ROI.
• Ask around- Browse the Web. Some basic social media marketing can be done by a college intern. To be honest we all are learning and have to stay current with the trends that change almost daily. Like lawyers, we practice. And You may be your best brand builder with a little sweat - equity. Get creative, get social and you might save a ton of money.
Feb 9, 2014
Hi Crystal, my question to you is that do you think in a diferent province like Québec, the prices would be diferent than Toronto, for instance. Do you get good clients that will be willing to pay 2000 or 5000 a month? I never got one of thouse in Quebec City. As soon I showed the project proposal, they quit working with me because of the prices. Thanks for your imput
Jan 30, 2014
Hi Brandy,
I'm not in agreement with many of the comments here, when it comes to hiring an "expert", or at least a professional, rather than someone who simply 'likes' social media.
Remember, you get what you pay for. You don't want someone who doesn't understand the basics of communications, hasn't grasped the nuances of your business or isn't looking at your core messaging strategically, managing your brand.
Here are four (4) blogs (one that is sarcastic, but still honest about pricing) that may be of greater value:
1. http://www.mackcollier.com/how-much-does-social-media-cost-in-2011/
2. http://www.bluecloudsolutions.com/blog/social-media-cost/
3. http://www.successiory.ca/blog/2014-1-21-what-social-media-costs-and-why
4. http://www.contentfac.com/how-much-does-social-media-marketing-cost/
On the flip side, undervaluing a service means the client doesn't really appreciate the work being done and will treat it as such, and the person being paid poorly will burn out. If you pay $50 for $500 shoes, you treat them like $50 shoes.
Jun 20, 2013
Brandy,
I am in the process of statring a company and would be interested in someone handling the social media aspect ofthe business. Let me know when you have a defined plan and cost structure.
Regards,
Dave
Jun 16, 2013
Understanding the difficulty of calculating ROI to social media efforts, the limited amount of college education required, and the lack of authentic certification courses for the role, I'd have to agree with Jeff Tincher here and say $300-$500 per month.
With that being said, if I had an "SMM Rockstar" who has at least 3-5 viral marketing successes behind them either through ego-bait or sheer genius like the guys who created these:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/MY-SISTER-SAID-IF-I-GET-ONE-MILLION-FANS-SHE-WILL-NAME-HER-BABY-MEGATRON/333067975442
and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4MnpzG5Sqc
Someone who can get OldSpice Guy to respond in-line to outreach with video and who has proof that their SMM drives massive brand visibility with real analytics, would definitely be a $5k/mo hire for me. Problem is, those people don't leave their current jobs because they are already being worshipped by their bosses.
Jun 16, 2013
Depends on what they bring to the table and how much you looking to get from it .... and if its only 5-6 hours per week that's a delegation task not a new employee ... unless there are other things to fill at least 20 hours per week. Per month rate - 24 hrs - no more than $325 but not worth the expence that goes with it.
Jun 15, 2013
Hi Brandy,
If it were me, I'd be thrilled with $200.00 per month. I do everything myself though, so I am not sure of the going rate. Good luck with your business!
Susan
Jun 14, 2013
I provide the type of services you describe in your post. Would you like an example of my pricing structure? It was not easy to answer that question for myself to decide how much to charge. If you think my input will help, let me know!
Lena
Jun 14, 2013
Sure, Lena! I'm not 100% sure if this is something I want to offer, but I've had several clients ask about what I'd charge for social media services, so I figure I ought to make some sense of it all and give them better answers than "let me get back to you on that." It would be great to know what other professionals are charging so I'm not totally out of the ballpark in either direction. :)
I've been providing wholesale social media management for over 3 years now. Our rates are structured so the reseller can double them and still be very competitive. the hourly rates ranges from $30 to $12 an hour based on the time required to meet objectives.
Im new here so I dont know the best way to communicate. I suppose you can look at my profile and get my email if your interested