A Day in the Life of a Social Media Manager

May 27, 2009 · Comments

Kat French

Kat French

Kat French

You know, if there’s one thing I get asked more than anything else about my job, it’s “What do you actually do all day?”

Because apparently, people think social media managers spend all day on Twitter/Facebook collecting followers and congratulating each other on getting paid to spend all day on Twitter/Facebook.

Well, Bub, I’ll tell you what I actually do all day. Behold, a look behind the velvet curtain at a Day in the Life of a Social Media Manager:

5:30 AM – Alarm goes off. I crush the snooze button because who the heck actually gets up at 5:30? Not me, clearly.

6:00 AM – Actually get up, and check mobile for the emails I missed overnight. Because apparently, advertising agency people aren’t into the whole sleeping thing.

Darn you, Steve Burns! And your little dog, too.

7:30 AM – Attempt to write a post for my own blog. Generally fail because “Blue’s Clues” is playing on the living room TV, thus robbing me of at least 50% of my available intelligence.

8:00 AM – Drive to work. Begin drafting responses in my head to the emails I read at 6:00. Do NOT actually attempt to type those responses while driving. Honest.

Seriously. It's a bad idea. No kidding.

8:30 AM – Get to work. Spend first half hour or so checking the various monitoring systems in place for our social media clients. Note stuff that will require a follow-up. Do embarrassing end-zone dance when I get a really nice client mention on a prominent social site.

9:00 AM – Check clients’ social outposts for comments that need a response. Make sure everyone is playing nicely together and that no one is posting anything that will make their legal teams’ heads spin around like a parliament of owls.

Shh! Seriously. He'll never miss it. 9:30 AM – Attempt to steal Jason’s copy of Wired magazine while he’s not looking.

9:35 AM – Fire up Google Analytics and other tools to see what’s up with clients’ traffic volume, bounce rates, time-on-site, etc. Attempt to avoid spraying decaf out my nose when I fail to remember seasonality issues.

Decaf in cup? Good. Decaf on keyboard? Very bad.

10:30 AM – Meeting or presentation of some sort wherein I will usually have to explain (A) RSS (B) Twitter (C) What the &%#^ is a widget?

11:30 AM – Answer more client emails. Research new opportunities for existing clients. Talk with other agency partners and vendors.

12:30 PM – Go to lunch and once again, attempt to write a blog post. Usually fail, as Sarah McLachlan is playing in the coffee shop, thus robbing me of at least 50% of my available intelligence.

1:00 PM – General webmastery for most of the afternoon. Send content back to clients with suggested keyword inclusion. Post new content to client websites. Make sure it got proofed and approved by legal. Other nerdy content-related stuff.

3:00 PM – Take a break from general webmastery to check RSS reader, poke my head into Twitter and Facebook.

4:00 PM – Put out whatever fires have cropped up over the course of the afternoon.

5:30 PM – Head home. Spend time with husband and the always interesting and often funny small people who call me “Mom.”

So, there you have it. Not the most glamorous day on earth, but it is fun and rewarding work for a person who likes dealing with both people and technology.  

imgs courtesy indiewench and  ford on flickr.  ”Blues Clues” is ® Nickelodeon.  
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  • I enjoyed this post the first few times I read it, and now I'm enjoying the comments. Because, like you said, it's not all glamorous all the time.
  • I enjoyed this post the first few times I read it, and now I'm enjoying the comments. Because, like you said, it's not all glamorous all the time.
  • I feel your pain. I know people look at me and wonder the same: "What does she DO all day?" Too funny. Thanks for insight. And... I can relate.
  • Interesting!

    I feel like there is a scarcity of good marketing today. Good marketing means which can convert the leads into sales. The only marketing that has moved me in the last couple of years is Social Media Optimization.
  • Bernice
    Hi Kat,

    I noticed in your blog you’ve written about Social media.

    In teaching online PR across the US we realized that for many people search is still a bit of a mystery. So we developed a News Optimization Toolbar with step-by-step instructions on how to optimize a press release. These instructions were written by Sally Falkow, who was one of the first PR practitioners to learn this skill and teach it to others. The toolbar also has links to all the websites and tools needed to do each step.

    You can find out more about the toolbar at http://www.press-feed.com/results/news/news.php...

    The toolbar can be downloaded free at http://www.press-feed.com/toolbar.

    We’d love to hear your feedback. And if you think the toolbar has value, please pass the links on to your readers.

    If you have questions about the toolbar, or you’d like to speak to Sally, let me know.

    Regards,

    Bernice Infante
    PR Resources Manager
    PRESSfeed
    http://www.press-feed.com
  • Kat great post about your craft. I do similar here in Oz for legal group - who while quite Legal 2.0 - have NO spare copies of Wired casually laying around the office sadly!

    My question [open to others also..] is this..... The Twitter*thing*.

    Yes, with Twitter such a new kid on the block I am having great success, as others clearly are, with it growing our websites . But I feel I'm using my Tweeetdeck a bit much - 10 good posts a day and maybe more if I get on a roll - which chews up time etc

    Do you block out Tweet time in your day or monitor,Tweet/RT as the mood takes you through-out day - ie structured Tweeting versus true spirit of Twitter.

    May the metrics be with you.

    Nick
    @foolkitlegal
  • Nice post.

    Your schedule seems demanding but at least it comes to an end. I think it is every important to take time-out from the social media world every day in order to keep your (my) sanity.

    The routine you describe makes this work a bit more tangible for outsiders. I think it makes sense to break things up in detail for clients so they understand where exactly our time and their money is being spent.

    I am sure a few guys offer you a copy of Wired by now.
  • Sounds oh so familiar... :) (Except, no short people here other than me) Nice post!
  • Wow.. I like your well organised schedule! This post seems to me as a list of Tweets from 5:30am to 5:30pm.. but it was more than micro blogging!..

    But Social Media Manager sounds great! Must be a tough job..

    But for me I feel, the best of Social Media is keeping balance between real life and social media life on internet!..
  • I would love to get into social media, I am taking every advantage of learning while I am still at grad school.
  • First off, I thought this was hilarious >> "and the always interesting and often funny small people who call me 'Mom.'"

    Second, they say that the best sleep happens after you hit the snooze button (just sayin')...

    But really, your work day sounds somewhat familiar as it closely resembles my own. Except my meetings are mostly conference calls, or video conferences and I host educational webinars throughout my day for clients.

    At the end of the day, like you, I find the work that I do very rewarding. It's nice when you like what you do isn't it?! (You don't have to answer that, I know you'll agree).
  • Facebook User
    Hear, hear!
    Good synopsis of your day, thanks for sharing it.
    My kids say I am just FB'ing & twittering all day for personal use, too! I work from home.

    I try to explain to my non-techie mom what I do & she says to please stop trying to tell her, it makes her head hurt.

    Kelly
  • KatFrench
    I feel ya on that last point. My family's eyes sort of glaze over when I start talking about work.
  • Betsy Stevenson
    Hi Kat,
    How can I connect with you on Twitter or LinkedIn? Thanks.
  • KatFrench
    I'm @KatFrench on Twitter and my LinkedIn profile is here: http://www.linkedin.com/in/katfrench

    Always happy to connect with other business communicators. :)
  • Sounds like a great job :)
  • KatFrench
    Yup. It beats spinning pizza dough over my head... :)
  • Sounds like you're able to do all of the above without "driving to work." So, why do you do the commute and not telework?
  • KatFrench
    Ari - I think that telework could absolutely be an option for a lot of social media managers, because as you said, outside in-person client meetings (which I still think are essential), there's nothing I couldn't technically do from home.

    There are a lot of reasons why I personally don't telework. For one thing, I like being in the city. I live in a really small rural town, and there's an energy downtown that is conducive to creative thinking--hence all the ad agencies on Main Street here in Louisville.

    Similarly, my coworkers provide fresh thinking when I get stuck. I could call or IM, but you never know when it's an interruption if you can't peek into their office first. Being physically here makes collaboration easier and more organic.

    Plus it would be REALLY hard to swipe Jason's magazines if I didn't come in to the office... ;-)
  • I love that you mention blue's clues. For some reason you just made me laugh.
  • KatFrench
    Glad it gave you a laugh. Fortunately, it's not as bad as it was when my oldest kid was a toddler/preschooler, because my youngest isn't obsessed with it like he was--she just watches it b/c it's on at that time.

    If I were to watch, for example, "Blue's Big Birthday Party," I would probably have a fit of apoplexy, having seen that particular episode roughly 5,234,933 times...
  • Haha...take that schedule...now add 7-9 hours on top of that and include a run. You now have my schedule :)
  • KatFrench
    You go, guy! I don't run, but I do usually have a yoga practice or walk thrown in there. It's just not as funny as the obligatory Blue's Clues joke. :)

    I know there are A LOT of people in this industry who work crazy schedules like you describe. But for me personally, it's really important that I be able to make a living AND have a life.
  • jordankettner
    Great article.

    Do you generally have programs like TweetDeck monitoring your twitter/facebook during the day? Or do you generally limit this to the 3:00PM time slot fo it (generally speaking, obviously each day is different)?

    "I will usually have to explain (A) RSS (B) Twitter (C) What the &%#^ is a widget?" - haha
  • KatFrench
    Glad you enjoyed it.

    Yes, I often have either Tweetdeck or Seesmic Desktop open for most of the day. It's often minimized, as I'm working on other things, but I try to scan it when I can during the day--and that's not necessarily at any particular time, just usually when I need a short break from something else.
  • You're up too? Heh.

    J
  • lol sounds pretty awesome though a bit taxing to me. Has it been worth it?
  • KatFrench
    Has it been worth it? Yes, so far.

    I entered the ad agency environment later in life than most do, I think. It's a very different pace and energy than working the client side of marketing. But most of the time, it's more energizing than taxing. :)

    And I personally like a really varied and unpredictable workday. Being a social media manager is a great fit for that!
  • Kat: What is the most interesting part of your day? The part you look forward to the most or the part that keeps you coming back?

    DJ Waldow
    @djwaldow
  • KatFrench
    Great question, DJ!

    Probably my favorite part of the day is any time I get to do hands-on training on blogging and social media. I love teaching, and I'm usually pretty good at finding the right metaphor or mnemonic to help people figure things out. I also love writing content, or presentations, or really any kind of writing work.

    But I've also been shocked at how much I really enjoy analytics, when I'm in a certain frame of mind. I'm not a numbers person, but I LOVE problem-solving, puzzles and codes, and analytics is really less about the numbers as it is about decoding the meaning behind the numbers.
  • Very nice Kat. Good to know what your day is like. I hope each day includes trying to steal something from Jason.
  • KatFrench
    Thanks, Michelle. At a minimum, trying to steal something from Jason is a weekly priority. :)

    It's not so much about the object to be stolen, as the challenge of accomplishing it. I consider myself Jason's personal Swiper the Fox. (Oh, Lord! See what I mean about the children's programming and brain drain? I did NOT just reference Dora the Explorer...)
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