How to hire the 'right' person to run your social media

You have made the decision to outsource your social media management, but now you need to choose the right person or organisation to run this for your veterinary practice.

There are many reasons businesses choose to outsource, whether that be a desire to focus on your core business activity (looking after pets!), you need someone to take your social media to the next level so it is a worthwhile task, or maybe you are time-poor and just need a fresh set of eyes to ensure you are staying ahead of your competitors, to name just a few.

Whatever your reason for looking to outsource, you must ensure that it is a worthwhile investment. So, what is it that you need?

Many businesses will decide to make a specific hire to take on this role in-house - this, much like the outsourcing option, has both advantages and disadvantages. For the sake of this article, we will be dissecting the idea of outsourcing your social media marketing, so that you can ensure you are hiring the right person (or people).

It seems that ‘everyone’ is a social media expert these days. With social media becoming a daily occurrence in most people's personal lives, it's hard to differentiate between ‘what looks good’ and what is actually adding and creating value for your business, in line with its aims. Social media is no longer just a ‘tick box’ exercise and is now a crucial and integral part of the marketing process. So let’s take a look at some of the key considerations which will help you decide how to hire the right person to manage your social media:

1. Sector

Which sector your business operates in is a really important factor in choosing the right person to run your social media. As a veterinary practice, using someone with veterinary and clinical expertise can be a time-saver when you're trying to run a busy business. With this in mind, you may want to consider checking out your agency or freelancer's credentials and look for a team able to offer a bespoke solution that works around you, with a key contact you can deal with directly. Large agencies are unlikely to be able to accommodate last-minute requests on a Friday afternoon (potentially during your peak times) and if they do, often an additional cost will be incurred. In addition, many larger agencies won't create bespoke content, and you'll pay for generic content that is being used for other veterinary practices across the country. Generic content, though it can be educational, doesn't tell your story, or highlight what makes you stand apart from the rest.

2. Budget

Let’s face it - we all want the biggest bang for our buck. You want your investment to work for you, in line with your business aims and not be constrained to a ‘package’. Outsourcing to a professional will allow you transparency in terms of reporting and also ‘know-how’ in terms of maximising your ROI (return on investment) through tried and tested methods. A bespoke solution can help you reduce your marketing costs in the long run and offers the flexibility to change when required, without lengthy contracts.

3. Relationship

What type of relationship do you want with someone tasked with placing your brand in the eye of the consumer? Alongside the basics - understanding your brand, tone of voice, and client, there is a huge element of trust in allowing someone to bring your vision to life. Client experience and reputation management are a huge part of the digital world and can be pivotal in the longevity of your business, so you want to ensure you have a capable individual managing this effectively for you. Social media is not a 9-5 job, so do you want someone to be an extension of your team who is truly invested in a small number of clients, or a larger agency where your practice is one of many (and unfortunately, simply a number on a spreadsheet)?

Above all, the key takeaway is to hire someone as invested in your success as you are! From there, you can’t go far wrong.

If you would like a free consultation and to talk about what you would like to achieve through social media, drop us a message at hello@join-embark.com

- we love to chat! We offer bespoke social media packages designed to fit your individual practice needs - there is no one-size-fits-all! Content we create is for your practice, and your practice alone as we don't believe in creating generic content that won't benefit you as a veterinary practice, or the pet owners in your local community.