Social media hiring in 2025: How to build a high-performing team

Social media has become an incredible marketing channel to find, engage, and convert just about any niche audience.

But there’s a lot of nuance needed to be successful. That’s why social media hiring matters in 2025: Brands need specific skills to cut through crowded feeds.

In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about social media team hiring in 2025, including:

• How to structure a team
• What different social media roles do
• How to interview candidates
• And a whole lot more.

We’ve also tapped social media experts, Sebhendu Pattnaik, Chief Marketing Officer at Covasant and Eileen Kwok, Social & Influencer Marketing Strategist at Hootsuite, for their tips on building a high-performing social media team

What does a social media team look like in 2025?

A social media team in 2025 is a hybrid of strategic human creativity, operational organization, and AI-powered efficiency. All of that may be bundled into a single, full-time social media manager working to grow a startup. Or it could be spread across a multi-disciplinary enterprise team of a dozen people, each with complementary specialty skills.

So, who’s on a social media team? That’ll depend on:

• Organization size: A complex, multinational, multi-brand corporation will need a larger, more diverse team than a local business that operates one shop in a single geography.
• Goals: Ambitious, wide-ranging growth goals will need more hands and a greater array of abilities than a goal like “generate awareness on TikTok.”
• Channels: If you’re building brand awareness with banking leaders on LinkedIn, you may just need one person with a specific skillset (no matter how large your organization is). If you need to reach a multi-generational audience using organic and paid strategies on Facebook, TikTok, and X, you’ll need more people with a broader skillset.

The social media team rarely, if ever, works in a vacuum. Their goals and tactics overlap with content marketing, customer care, growth marketers, and the brand team.

Source: Zappos

For example, you may have someone focused on growing your brand through organic content on TikTok and Instagram. But they’ll also need to field comments and questions from existing customers and collaborate with influencers.

And often, one “social media” hire may do jobs that would officially land in other categories — as you’ll see in our examples.

When is the right time to hire for social media?

There’s no blinking indicator that’ll tell you the perfect time to place a new social media hire. But there are signs that suggest it may be time to do so.

Signs your social strategy has outgrown your current team

If growth stalls or DMs pile up, it’s time to hire::

• Performance plateau: Your follower count has gone stagnant, engagement is flat, and the flow of new leads from social isn’t growing.
• Complex social needs: You’ve grown from an ecommerce site with a couple of social channels to a multi-channel, multi-media, full-funnel social selling enterprise with new social media initiatives.
• Missed engagement opportunities: Comments sit unanswered, reviews on social channels go unchecked, and your list of unanswered DMs is longer than a CVS receipt.
• Burnout: Your marketing team of one is frazzled trying to manage paid social ads, create new content, and keep track of all the brand mentions.
• Lack of specialization: You’ve found an interested audience on YouTube Shorts and it’s time to bring in a video storyteller to take it to the next level.

Source: GlowingGoddess7

According to Pattnaik, it’s a linear connection between business growth and social media team growth.

“When the work volume increases and we know that the conversations we need to participate in, or respond to, are growing over capacity, that’s when we decide to hire an additional person,” he shares. “In addition, when we want to get into an area within social media that is not within the current competency of the team, we hire as well.”

For Kwok, the pressure test is when one person is pulled in too many directions. “Working in social media involves content strategy and creation, analytics, social listening, engagements, support in managing your social inbox, and other tasks that directly affect your organic reach,” she says.

“As you can see, that’s already quite the list, so the minute the one-person-social-team feels like they can’t give each task their undivided attention, it’s time to hire an additional headcount.”

Business stages and hiring readiness

In addition to the points above, consider your business’s stage of growth and whether it will require more social media resources to achieve its goals.

• Business stage: Are you in startup, scale-up, or full-on enterprise mode? Let your social team reflect that stage of growth and hire at least a part-time resource.
• Business goals: Even more important than stage, consider your goals. If your business model requires a lot of leads from multiple sources and audiences, you’re more likely to need a larger, more diversely skilled social team than even a large company that sells to a few enterprise businesses and can connect easily through just LinkedIn.

Source: Maxsemo

Which social media roles should you hire first?

Social media marketers come in many forms and can have a very diverse set of skills.

“Make sure whoever you hire has the skills you’re looking for,” Kwok explains. “If you’re mainly looking for content creation, look for experience in creating short-form video, simple graphic design, and copywriting. If you’re looking for strategy, prior experience building something from the ground up is essential.”

Let’s break down the most common roles and job types of a social media team, see their core job functions, and look at when you should consider hiring each.

Social media manager

A social media manager oversees all brand activity on social platforms, from strategy to posting.They may be managing a multi-person team. Or they may be a one-person band that handles copywriting, graphic design, social media strategy, posting, scheduling, and more.

An SMM is likely your first social media hire unless you have a very specialized need. Ideally, look for someone who has experience in several disciplines and who can grow into a leadership role.

Social media strategist

A social media strategist is similar to an SMM and is sometimes hired for the same purpose. But really, your strategist should be more focused on the big picture of analyzing data, refining target audiences, reviewing results, and creating a social plan that aligns with your business goals.

If you haven’t hired an SMM, a strategist could be your first pick if you also have an agency doing the legwork of content creation and publishing.

Social media content creator or video producer

A content writer or video producer steers your brand voice and tone. They create the copy and visuals that the world will see. Suppose you have a highly specialized need or a large social media team. In that case, you may have a creator who focuses on creating engaging content,a graphic designer, and someone who captures static images and video.

If your Instagram page or YouTube channel lacks the flair that makes your brand stand out, it’s a good sign that you need an experienced content creator.

Community manager

A community manager has a tough and important job. They use social listening tools like Hootsuite to learn when and how your brand is mentioned, then jump in to create partnerships and influence your brand’s reputation.

They may also manage a community built by the brand. Starbucks, for example, has a thriving community called “The Leaf Rakers Society” built around a love of fall (and all things pumpkin spice).

Source: The Leaf Rakers Society

If the sentiment about your brand isn’t great, or if you’re not sure what your brand sentiment is, you should consider hiring a community manager.

Paid social specialist

A paid social specialist manages social media advertising campaigns. They typically manage budgets, direct ad spend, and analyze performance. They’ll either collaborate with content creators to produce the ads, or create them themselves.

Source: Stitchfix

Your paid social specialist will be an early hire, especially if your goal is to generate new leads directly from social platforms.

Social analytics lead

This is a specialized role that crunches all the data from your various organic and paid social media metrics and turns them into insights the team uses to boost performance. They’ll dig into questions about the lifetime value of social media leads, which channels have the best ROI, and how certain audiences react to various messages at different times of the day, week, or year.

Some of the best social analytics leads in the biz use Hootsuite to gather and visual all that data.

If you generate a lot of data from multiple social channels, multiple audiences, and a range of campaigns, but aren’t seeing the downstream results you’d like, hiring a social analytics lead should be in your near future.

Customer care/social support

A customer care or social support specialist listens for and reacts to customers who reach out via social media. These messages may be about product problems, a review on Facebook, or even suggestions your customers have that’ll make what you offer better.

Source: Woot!

This role is sometimes overlooked because it’s not focused on acquiring new customers. But if you get a lot of customer questions, reviews, and concerns on social channels that go unanswered, a customer support specialist will save your reputation and keep those customers happy. They can also be helpful by collaborating with a public relations specialist.

What does an AI social media strategist do?

An AI strategist makes sure your team is using the right tools for all possible tasks and doing so efficiently. They’re on top of new AI platforms and use cases so everyone can make the most of the technology.

For the most part, this role will exist in large organizations that need to streamline many complex workflows. They’ll often act as a social media coordinator. However, a smaller business could assign an existing person with some of the tasks as part of their job.

How do I write a clear social media job description?

Here are some ways to tune up your social media job post.

Be clear about the role

We’ve all seen those job descriptions that are so vague and far-reaching that it’s hard to tell what the job will actually be. Or those that look like they want one person to do the job of 20?

Source: MAYUR448

Be extremely transparent about what the role actually entails, so no one says this about your job description. Try adding a section describing the day-to-day activities of this role. Mention as many relevant tasks as possible.

While writing the JD, make sure that you have someone who’s eager to learn. Because social media platforms change over time, even the importance of a specific social media channel in your GTM strategy can change, too.

But most of all, use your job description to single out people who can adapt. “While writing the JD, ensure that you have someone who’s eager to learn,” Pattnaik shares. “Because social media platforms change over time, even the importance of a specific social media channel in your GTM strategy can change too.”

Kwok explains that you should break down all the expected tasks in the description and to be realistic about the position. “[Include] every social task they will be working on,” she says.

“A lot of roles tend to bake in graphic design, video production, running paid ads, influencer marketing, community, etc. Those are completely different roles, and while they can fall under the social team, a sole person can not be expected to do that all. A task like running paid ads for example, requires prior knowledge and experience, so laying it all out there is necessary.”

Platform knowledge

There’s some baseline knowledge to look for in a potential social media hire, like a bachelor’s degree. But you’ll also want to look for experience in the social apps they’ll work in.

In your job description, be extra clear about which social platforms your new hire needs to know inside and out from day one. If you sell to Gen Z through TikTok, a LinkedIn expert won’t be the best fit.

Which skills are must-have vs nice-to-have?

This will depend on the role you’re filling and who else you have on the team.

Say this is your first social media hire, and no one else on your team has experience. The person you bring in should have a working knowledge of scheduling tools, the ability to create a strategy from scratch, and so on.

On the other hand, if you have someone already running social media and you need, say, a designer or video content creator, it’s less important that they know the exact tool you use to schedule content. Instead, focus on the specialized skills they’d need to achieve your goals.

What metrics should I list in the job description?

Please do not publish your social media job description without including how success in the role will be measured and the expectations. And make sure they align with your business goals.

If you want to increase engagement on your active social channels, consider hiring a community manager. Include metrics like engagement rate as a measure in the job description. And add that your goal is to increase it by 25% in the next year, so they know the bar they have to hit.

One metric that gets missed, according to Kwok, is pay. “More roles should also include compensation,” she notes. “There are many times a Senior Social Media role (develop global social marketing strategy) receives junior level pay.

Applicants should know about that before they go through the entire recruitment process. Being upfront and transparent saves both parties more time!”

Interview questions and red flags to watch out for

Your crisp, clear job description brought in a list of stellar applicants. Now it’s time for the interviews. These interview questions and list of red flags will help you get to know each candidate, and set everyone up for success.

Smart questions to ask

You’ll probably start off with some easy questions to warm up the conversation. After you get through the basics, use this list to dig deeper into your ideal candidate’s interests and capabilities:

1. What steps would you take to create a social media marketing strategy from scratch?
   • What’s one thing many [job title] get wrong about social and content strategy?
2. Tell me about a time you had to manage a brand crisis on social media?
   • How did you learn about it, and what steps did you take?
   • Alternative: How would you know if a crisis was brewing, and how would you handle it?
3. How do you keep up with current trends?
   • And how do you know which trends are worth leaning into?
4. Which metrics do you believe are the most important to track?
5. Tell me about a time you noticed something in your social media analytics that made you take action?
6. Why did you get into social media?
7. Tell me about a campaign you worked on that performed really well or that you were particularly proud of.
8. Describe our target audience and tell me what kind of content they would care about.
9. How would you go about growing a new social media account?

Kwok likes to ask, “What brands [the applicant] thinks do social media marketing well?” She adds that “Not only does it showcase their personality and the style of content that resonates most, but you’re able to understand if there’s an alignment with how they judge a brands social account.”

Pattnaik focuses his interview questions on activity. “While hiring a Social Media Manager, my first few questions are: How many followers do you have, and how active are you in social media in having conversations, sharing points of view, and joining conversations?”

Red flags to watch out for

Even great potential candidates can end up being a poor fit. Look out for these red flags while speaking with each candidate.

• Generic answers: If the candidate isn’t offering personal stories and specific details in their answers, they may not have the experience you need.
• Lack of platform nuance: Everyone you interview likely knows how to publish a post on Instagram and write a Tweet. But do they understand how to hook a TikTok scroller or get people to click a link from Facebook?
• No measurement focus: At the end of the day, the content we publish has a goal. Has the candidate measured the impact of their work? Do they know how to adjust when something isn’t working?

That last one is particularly important, Pattnaik notes. “If someone demonstrates that they are data-driven and have been fairly engaged in the channels, it gives me confidence that they know ‘what works’ on that specific social media channel.”

And for Kwok, it’s a red flag if they can only give examples of big, splashy brands. “I’m looking for the applicant to mention niche accounts that I haven’t heard of before,” she shares. “It shows they’ve done their research, and I also can learn something new in the process.”

For example, Kwok says many SMMs might reference Duolingo and other big corporations that do social well. However, “I’d be interested to learn what smaller brands that have less resources are also excelling in the social media space.”

How to build an agile, high-performing social team

Hiring the best people is step one. Now make sure they’re outfitted with the best tools and training to do the job.

Use the right tools and workflows

Whether you have a single social media manager doing it all or a team of specialized pros, Hootsuite will help them grow your social media presence quickly.

Hootsuite’s content creation and scheduling features make it easy to create better content quickly and post it a just the right time.

And since social media marketing is often a team sport, your social superstars can easily create a customized content collaboration and approval process that keeps everything on brand and on track.

Of course, they’ll need a way to see how all of those posts on all of those channels are performing. With Hootsuite, you can get a birds-eye view (see what we did there?) of your overall analytics or dive into a single post for a closer view.

Invest in upskilling and learning

The evolution of social media (and digital media as a whole) is accelerating at an incredible rate. Almost nothing looks the same as it did a few years ago. There are new platforms, algorithms, and trends to keep up with. Plus, the sweeping changes AI is causing.

Keeping current with it all doesn’t happen by accident. You have to be intentional about learning and upskilling. Here are a few ways we’ve seen SMMs and teams do it:

• Challenge team members to find and trial one new tool they think will help, then report on their findings.
• Schedule regular blocks of time (a couple of hours each week or a day or two each quarter) specifically for learning.
• Ask a team member to present on something new they’ve learned each month.
• Support learning efforts with paid courses as an employment benefit.
• Keep track of new skills and tool proficiencies with your team.

3 social media team structures from real brands

How do successful companies at different stages of growth structure their social media teams? We asked a fast-growing startup and a large, well-established company to share social media team org chart. We’ve also added a peak into how our team is set up.

1. Fast-growing startup: Covasant

Covasant is a dynamic tech business that delivers some heavy-hitting agentic AI solutions like predictive analytics and intelligent automation. The team maintains a consistent presence on multiple social platforms, especially X (Twitter) and LinkedIn. Their messaging is diverse — covering topics from new product releases to a local hackathon they’ve sponsored.

Source: Covasant

Covasant splits the job of social media between two people:

Social Media Manager: This is the creative storytelling expert. They’re focused on digital content creation, working closely with the graphics and design team.

Digital Campaign Executive: This person has a diverse skill set. They’re the social listening and response person who keeps a tab on — and responds to — the conversations happening with Covasant (and the company’s other brands). They also run paid social media ads.

The business is in the process of hiring for a data analytics role. That person will sit in the social media team, but will operate across the whole marketing group.

Mid-sized company: Hootsuite

As you can imagine, we’re pretty active in social channels here at Hootsuite. Our team consists of four people who, together, own the strategy across all platforms, create content, and generally keep the social media marketing wheels turning.

• Social & Influencer Marketing Strategist: This role manages influencer marketing and employee advocacy/social selling strategies. They also oversee TikTok and Instagram strategy and help with the overall content creation process.
• Social Team Lead: The lead owns Tier 1 social campaigns, the social content calendar, engagement, and social listening strategy. They oversee LinkedIn strategy and help in the overall content creation process.
• Social Performance + Community Marketing Specialist: This team member is in charge of inbound and outbound engagements, social listening tactics, and overall community strategy. They oversee Facebook, X, and Threads, and they help in the overall content creation process.
• Senior Manager, Social Marketing: The Senior Manager leads the global social media strategy. They guide strategy, reporting, and attribution initiatives, while making sure channels are used effectively and tactically. They have the final say on the team’s work and help turn business goals into clear social media plans that create impact.”

Established big business: Appian

Appian is a tech company that offers low-code software development solutions. They help businesses build internal apps that improve workflows.

Source: Appian

Appian uses both internal and external social media support, including:

• Social Media Manager: This employee focuses on managing social content production and publishing.
• Digital Marketing Manager: The DMM at Appian handles the paid marketing efforts on social media.
• Agency support: Appian taps into agency help for both organic and paid, as needed.
• Vice President of Digital Marketing and Experience: This person oversees the social media team as part of their role.

The clear delineation between paid and local efforts is clear here. But if you scroll their feeds and see the brand’s ads, they maintain a consistent message — an important takeaway for any business as it ads new members to the social media team.

Social media team hiring FAQ

Okay, let’s cover a few of the most common questions about hiring a social media team.

When should I hire a social media manager?

A business should consider hiring a Social Media Manager when social media is taking up too much of the marketing team’s time, when engagement and other results are stagnant, or when the team struggles to maintain a consistent publishing schedule.

What roles are essential on a social media team?

Fundamentally, you’ll need someone who can post relevant content regularly, track and report results, and adjust the strategy as needed. Additional roles—like a copywriter, videographer, or social media strategist — will depend on the needs and resources of the business.

How do I build a social media team from scratch?

To build a high-quality social media team from scratch, you’ll first need to assess your social media goals and the resources you have available. Then, you’ll hire to fit those criteria.

How much should I budget for social media hiring?

Your budget for social media hiring will depend on your goals and which skills you’ll need to achieve them. The average pay for an experienced social media manager generalist starts in the range of $60,000 to $70,000 USD.

Can one person manage all of social media?

Yes, one person can manage all of social media in many cases. But it shouldn’t be at an entry level. And if your growth stagnates or your SMM experiences burnout, you’ll need to consider hiring to grow.

Save time managing your social media presence with Hootsuite. Publish and schedule posts, find relevant conversions, engage your audience, measure results, and more — all from one dashboard. Try it free today.