How to Hire a Community Manager – InstantFollowerz

So you want to hire a community manager to help you raise your company’s brand awareness and better connect with your consumers. There’s just one problem: you’re not sure how to hire a community manager.

What qualities should be sought when hiring? Where can you find a community manager? Why do you even need it? Well, you’ve come to the right blog because I’m going to explain all that and more.

Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about how to hire a community manager.

Why hire a community manager?

81% of consumers must trust a brand to consider a purchase. The primary function of the community manager is to build rapport, trust and community with the brand’s audience.

Of course, a community manager will help your brand build trust with your consumers, getting them to buy your products and services.

“Consumers make decisions based on the opinions of people they know, like and trust,” says Erica Finley, HubSpot’s chief community marketing manager.

She says, “Word of mouth has never been more powerful, and seeing real-life use cases, being able to ask questions and hear honest reactions to products and services is no longer just a ‘nice to have’.”

According to Finley, community managers “create dedicated spaces that people can turn to for inspiration, advice, entertainment and more.” And all this happens while raising brand awareness.

So now that you know the benefits of hiring a community manager, you just need to find one. But where?

Where to find a community manager

The good news is that there are multiple places to find great community manager candidates. Here are a few of my favorites:

• Community Club. This non-profit organization offers an excellent resource for connecting with experienced community managers.

• CMX Hub. This website includes a job board where you can post and search for community management positions. It is particularly valuable for finding candidates who are particularly keen to progress in these roles.

• LinkedIn. LinkedIn allows you to explore the profiles, experiences and references of potential community managers. You can also post your own job vacancies and join numerous community management groups where professionals discuss industry trends, share tips and exchange job opportunities.

• Facebook groups. Facebook is home to community management groups, some are location-based while others are industry-specific. These groups are great for posting jobs, asking for referrals, and connecting directly with potential employees.

• Upwork. Upwork is great if you’re looking to hire a contract or freelance community manager. You can create a job ad that describes the project you’re hiring for and the qualifications you need.

Qualities to look for in a community manager

“Community managers are often mediators for community conflicts and may be asked to craft crisis communications,” says Finley. “They must be curious and skilled at conducting research, both online and through people-centered methods such as focus groups.”

Community managers also sometimes act as content creators and may be called upon to create entire calendars based on a specific persona or brand-related topic.

“They are public speakers who often serve as emcees and facilitators for community events,” she says. “The list goes on/”

In short, utility managers must have the following qualities:

• Public speaking skills
• Conflict and crisis management skills
• Curiosity and basic research skills
• Ability to be creative and create content

How to write a community manager job description

Okay, so the two Erikas (Finley and I) have explained why you should hire a community manager, where to find one, and what qualities they should possess. Now we need to dive into writing a community manager job description.

Essentially, your job description should include the following:

• Who/what is your company
• What are your goals
• How will the utility manager help in achieving the stated goals
• What qualities and experience does a manager need to be successful in an organization?

Let’s check out this Community Manager job posting from Scale AI.

Scale AI begins by explaining the company’s goal and how the community manager fits into their vision:

“Scale’s Generative AI business unit is emerging and currently experiencing historic levels of growth. As a Community Manager, you will lead initiatives that will connect with thousands of contributors on our platform.”

In other words, Scale Ai is experiencing unprecedented growth and needs a community manager to nurture its growing audience.

Next, the company explains what the utility manager will do, such as:

• “Collaborate with operations, support, communications and marketing teams to create and execute community engagement campaigns and content.

• Develop and execute community engagement strategies to increase participation and satisfaction, including monitoring community platforms such as Reddit and Linkedin and managing our internal Slack community.

• Be responsible for community support to respond to questions, complaints or comments on our SOCIAL MEDIA platforms and channels.

• Host virtual events to foster a sense of community, monitor community feedback and sentiment to proactively resolve issues, and manage and grow our online presence across platforms.

Finally, the job posting lists the skills and experience needed for success, including:

• “Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, communications, finance or related field and more than 2 years of communications, marketing operations, field operations, program management, project management or related experience

• Managed the presence of the technology product on social networks.

• Strong and clear communication skills, both oral and written – able to synthesize complex details into accessible and digestible content.

• Ability to analyze quantitative metrics and adjust strategies accordingly.

• Strong results orientation and willingness to roll up your sleeves to get the job done.

• A passion for creating a positive and engaging experience in the community.”

10 interview questions to ask community manager candidates

Whether you’re interviewing for community manager positions or looking for a community manager for your organization, here are some interview questions you should know:

1. What skills and qualifications do you have to prepare for this job?

2. How do you measure your success as a community manager?

3. What strategies do you use or would you use to strengthen our brand’s connection to our community?

4. How would you build our community from the ground up? What strategies would you use?

5. How do you stay on top of the latest best practices in community management?

6. What is your proudest achievement as a community manager?

7. What does community mean to you?

8. Do you have experience using SOCIAL MEDIA to build or maintain a community? Explain.

9. How can you refer members of our community to our website to purchase a product or service?

10. How would you describe your management style?

Whew! In this post, we’ve covered a lot about community management, the skills needed, where to find community managers, and how to create job ads for the role.

Now you’re ready to either hone your craft as a community manager or hire one for your organization.

Anyway, good luck!