How to Become a Social Media Manager

With billions of social media users around the world, businesses and individuals now rely on these platforms to promote their products and services to potential customers. If you want to join the growing world of social media, understanding how to become a social media manager is the first step.

Social media management is a fast-paced career that can open up a wide variety of career opportunities.

“As social media has become more measurable and has shown its ability to build brands, create sales and recruit, the role of the social media manager has risen in status and need,” said Thomas Jensen, adjunct marketing faculty at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) and marketing and business development director for Community Health Systems in Texas.

Before you consider becoming a social media manager, it’s important to understand what social media management is and what your duties might be in this role.

What is Social Media Management?

Social media management is a broad field that plays a vital role in almost every industry.

As a social media manager, you could plan, create and oversee promotional campaigns on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and more.

According to Jensen, social media managers interact with various departments within an organization, sharing why social media is a valuable marketing asset and reporting on results to company leadership.

As the industry changes, social media managers must be able to pivot at a moment's notice, said Jensen.

Social media is evolving all the time, with new social platforms being introduced to the market and new features being added to existing ones. As the social media landscape has grown, so has the impact of social media management.

Statista reported more than 5.2 billion people — nearly 64% of the global population — were social media users as of February 2025. Rapid growth has also been seen in the amount of money businesses spend on social media marketing each year; by the end of 2025, annual social media advertising spending is expected to top $276 billion, according to Statista.

As businesses invest more in social media marketing, the day-to-day role of a social media manager has expanded.

What Does a Social Media Manager Do?

As a social media manager, you can explore a variety of job opportunities across many different industries.

According to Tami Brouillette, adjunct marketing faculty at SNHU and owner of Contented Media, social media managers can work in a variety of settings, including:

• As a contractor, freelancer or business owner
• For a small or medium business as the in-house social media manager
• On a social media team within a large company’s marketing department
• Within an advertising or marketing agency working with several clients

Your day-to-day work as a social media manager may vary depending on where you work and who you work for.

According to Jensen, social media managers are often responsible for tasks such as:

• Collaborating with other departments within an organization on marketing initiatives
• Developing marketing strategies and creating content for each social media platform
• Engaging with an organization's social media followers across all platforms
• Managing an organization's reputation on social media and handling public relations crises
• Monitoring key performance indicators and reporting results to various departments and executives

Brouillette also emphasized the importance of certain soft skills needed to be a successful social media manager.

You'll want to be adaptive and curious; social media changes constantly, and it's critical that social media managers feel open and eager to meet the needs of that changing landscape. Creativity is key, too. Whether you're brainstorming the next month's content calendar or crafting the unique tone of a brand's social media presence, you'll need to think outside the box — and think like your audience.

It's also possible you'll manage a team of social media professionals, so Jensen underscored the importance of building leadership skills, too.

If these job responsibilities match your interests — and these skills match your own — a role as a social media manager might be calling your name. So, how do you become one?

How Should I Start in Social Media Management?

If becoming a social media manager is one of your career goals, you’ll need more than a basic understanding of social media platforms.

While many young professionals are active on social media, that doesn’t necessarily translate into a successful social media management career, said Brouillette.

“An understanding of the mechanics of social media and a foundation in marketing is a requirement,” she said. “Many Millennials and Gen Zers have grown up with social media and are fluent, but don’t know how to connect social media and marketing concepts.”

Social media management is also not typically an entry-level career, Jensen said. While some small businesses may hire a new graduate with little to no experience, most organizations seek workers with a marketing degree and professional experience.

“The complexity of social media is growing, and not only does a candidate need to have experience under their belt, but they must know management principles if they have staff they oversee as well as for interactions with other departments,” he said.

Here are four ways to work toward a social media management career.

Earn a Social Media Degree

Educational requirements for social media jobs will vary depending on the setting you work in and the type of work you do.

The majority of marketing jobs will require at least a bachelor’s degree, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Some management positions may also prefer a master’s degree in marketing or another relevant field.

The degree you choose to prepare for a social media management career — and the specific courses you take — can also vary.

“While a specialized marketing degree with an emphasis on digital marketing is becoming the ‘gold standard,’ I still find plenty of candidates with general marketing degrees who have taken it upon themselves to specialize either through experience or certifications in the world of social media,” said Jensen.

Some social media degree options include:

• Bachelor of Science (BS) in Social Media Marketing: With a four-year marketing degree with a concentration in social media marketing, you’ll learn how to leverage social media to attract and engage customers, build loyalty and drive business. You’ll take courses focused on social media strategy, creating social media campaigns, digital advertising and more.
  
  
• BS in Digital Marketing: A bachelor’s degree in marketing with a concentration in digital marketing will help you understand and apply key digital marketing strategies and use data analytics to measure campaign success. Your courses can cover topics including mobile marketing, search engine optimization, digital advertising and analytics.
  
  
• BS in Data Analytics: Identifying and tracking key performance indicators is a critical part of any successful social media marketing campaign. A degree in data analytics can help you leverage data to make marketing decisions and make you a valuable asset to a social media team. You’ll take courses focused on data analysis techniques, applied data analysis and emerging technologies.
  
  
• Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Communication: With a bachelor’s degree in communication, you’ll build valuable verbal, visual and written communication skills, explore branding and practice strategic storytelling. With a communication degree focused on new media, you can take courses on new media technology, social media marketing, graphic design and writing.

Danielle Upham '19 '21G earned her BS in Social Media Marketing from SNHU — then continued on to earn her Master of Science (MS) in Digital Marketing. She said both degrees provided her with the foundational knowledge she was looking for.

"I love the hands-on experience that SNHU offers," she said. "Each week, we covered real-world scenarios like creating marketing plans for a dog food company and KitchenAid."

Upham said she feels that the skills she learned have given her a leg up in the job market — and that the experience of earning her degrees 100% online has been more beneficial to her than she anticipated.

"I walked into a brand new career," she said. "These degrees have given me the opportunity to step into my marketing management role with complete competency. I’m also able to build relationships remotely because of the experience at SNHU. Sometimes it’s hard to stay human online, and being a student online helped me become a marketing manager online as well."

Learn Key Platforms and Technical Skills

A degree is a great first step toward becoming a social media manager, but you may need to build additional technical skills depending on the job you want.

According to Jensen and Brouillette, some of the most common technical skills needed for social media management include:

• Audience monitoring
• Customer service
• Data analytics
• Research skills
• Search engine optimization

Earn Professional Certifications or Certificates

One of the best ways to build key technical skills and set yourself apart from other aspiring social media managers is to seek professional certifications or certificates.

Certifications are typically awarded by a specific professional association or organization rather than a university or college, and are focused on role-specific skills. There are many certifications within the social media management industry that can show your expertise with specific platforms, tools or subject areas.

As an aspiring social media manager, you might consider one of many online training options from HubSpot Academy. The Social Media Marketing Certification, in particular, gives learners the skills they need to create engaging content, build a social media strategy and measure results.

Or, you could choose to pursue a certificate: a shorter program offered by a higher ed institution that concentrates on a specific field of expertise. While certifications can expire, certificates cannot, making them a valuable — and lasting — professional asset.

SNHU, for example, offers two graduate certificates that can be great additions to a prospective social media manager's resume:

• Graduate Certificate in Social Media Marketing: This online 15-credit certificate gives you valuable tools for evaluating strategic uses of social media, developing a social media strategy and marketing campaign, and creating effective social media messaging for specific target audiences.
  
  
• Graduate Certificate in Marketing: If you want the opportunity to study marketing in a broader scope, this customizable, online 15-credit certificate could be perfect for you. In addition to learning the ins and outs of social media, you'll have the option to study consumer behavior, ad design, brand management and more — each of which are skills that can translate well to a career in social media management.

In addition to these options, there are many other social media certifications and certificates specific to various platforms and skills. No matter your goals, there’s a credential that can help you build and demonstrate the skills you need to get there.

Get Real-world Experience

While focusing on education is essential when exploring how to become a social media manager, getting professional experience is just as vital. Even if you’re new to the field, there are many ways to get real-world experience while still pursuing a degree.

Internships are a great way to get hands-on work experience in social media and will also give you the chance to learn from others who are already working in the field, said Jensen.

Volunteering to work on an organization’s social media for free is another way to get experience while still working toward a degree or job opportunity, said Brouillette.

Building your own social media channels and growing a large following can also help you get the real-world experience that employers are looking for and can demonstrate your audience-building skills.

Common Questions About Social Media Management

There are many different ways to work in social media today. And in a field that is growing and changing all the time, it's natural to have questions about what a career in social media management could look like.

Are Social Media Managers in Demand?

Social media managers are in demand across many industries. According to BLS data, employment of advertising, promotions and marketing managers is projected to grow 6% from 2024 to 2034, faster than the national average.*

Brouillette said that while there are many opportunities in the field, it can be competitive. Developing a niche, such as social media for healthcare, education, nonprofits or e-commerce, can help make you a more marketable candidate.

Do Social Media Managers Make Money?

No matter what industry you end up working in, becoming a social media manager can help you earn a competitive salary.

The median annual wage for advertising and promotions managers was $159,660 in May 2024, BLS reports.* Marketing managers, specifically, earned a median wage of $161,030, according to BLS data.*

Are There Opportunities for Career Growth as a Social Media Manager?

Once you know how to become a social media manager, there are many other opportunities you can explore to move into leadership roles within the field.

“Social media managers who work on expanding their skills into other areas of digital marketing can definitely grow within the field,” said Brouillette. “The more digital marketing skills one has, the better.”

Specializing in a specific part of the social media world, such as data analytics, paid advertising or customer engagement, is one way to move into leadership roles.

But social media managers also have the opportunity to play an even bigger role in the organizations they serve.

“The growth is very robust and I believe will continue to grow in importance as well as detail,” said Jensen.* “I have seen social media managers jump to directors of marketing, vice presidents of marketing, and vice presidents of social media.”

Social media is used by virtually every business running today, from small local businesses and nonprofits to Fortune 500 companies and even government agencies. Given the wide reach of social media, there are many possibilities to work in this fast-growing field.

*Cited job growth projections may not reflect local and/or short-term economic or job conditions and do not guarantee actual job growth. Actual salaries and/or earning potential may be the result of a combination of factors including, but not limited to: years of experience, industry of employment, geographic location, and worker skill.

Danielle Gagnon is a freelance writer focused on higher education. She started her career working as an education reporter for a daily newspaper in New Hampshire, where she reported on local schools and education policy. Gagnon served as the communications manager for a private school in Boston, MA before later starting her freelance writing career. Today, she continues to share her passion for education as a writer for Southern New Hampshire University. Connect with her on LinkedIn.