In a few short weeks, I will celebrate my fourth anniversary with #Strella Social Media. Sometimes it feels like it has been every bit of those four years, and sometimes it feels like I’ve been in the game for a short period of time. Marc Anthony said, “if you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life.” In my working life, I’ve never known the truth behind these wise words, until now. However, it’s been quite the learning experience. Nearly four years ago, I wrote a post about the five things that surprised me about being a social media manager. Seems the surprises never end! Here’s what I’ve learned - updated for 2017.
Things Change. In a field like social media, change is guaranteed. If you’ve reviewed your LinkedIn profile lately, you may notice that it’s changed quite a bit. Like all things that change, there is a learning process associated with the fluctuations that happen in social media. I’ve learned it’s best to go with the flow.
It’s Still Not Personal. When you’re dealing in a service-based business, you have to put yourself in the shoes of the client. You cater to their needs, not your own. Every time I develop content or share an idea with a client, I run the risk of being shot down. It’s hard sometimes, but I’ve developed a rather thick skin. I’ve learned that their business is their baby and I owe it to them to do what they need me to do.
Clients Leave. This year, I lost a beloved client with no notice, no warning, nothing. It broke my spirit a little bit, but yet I persisted. Why? Because I had to. Social media doesn’t stop and I had other clients to answer to, so I stood up and brushed myself and went on with my life. Although I will dearly miss that client, I’ve learned that I have to put my best face forward and take care of the clients that didn’t walk away.
You Can’t Please Everyone. While some of my clients are fantastic and heap their praises upon what I do for them, some of them seem to never be happy with what I do. I can take constructive criticism – I’m a writer, for goodness sake – but when you drop the constructive from that phrase, it’s a hard pill to swallow. I recently had a client that didn’t seem happy with anything. I was given incredibly vague information and very little feedback - I did the best I could with what I had. I’ve learned to pull up my big girl pants and soldier on in hopes of finally getting it right.
Your Team Matters. In the beginning, our team was small and we worked effectively together, so the team dynamics never really impacted my life. While we are still a small business, we have grown. We’ve also developed core values and it’s important that every addition to the team fit that mold We run like a well-oiled machine, and not because any one of us is perfect, but because as a team, we come pretty close! I’ve learned the value of a good team - we have each other’s backs, we celebrate our triumphs and we’re there for each other when the chips are down.
When I first jumped into this pool called social media, I never realized how deep I was venturing. I thought I would write a couple of articles and go about my daily life. I was wrong, but I’m not disappointed. In fact, this business has become very important to me - and the longer I’m involved, the bigger impact it has on my life. Forgive me for being cliché, but Marc Anthony has a point -- I do love what I do, so it’s not really ‘work’ anyway!
