{"id":166548,"date":"2023-09-21T17:00:24","date_gmt":"2023-09-21T22:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.digitalmarketer.com\/?p=166548"},"modified":"2023-11-28T13:15:03","modified_gmt":"2023-11-28T19:15:03","slug":"growing-your-social-marketing-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.digitalmarketer.com\/blog\/growing-your-social-marketing-team\/","title":{"rendered":"Are Skill Gaps Holding Back Your Social Media Marketing Team’s Potential?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Social media is one of the most quickly evolving areas of digital marketing. So, your social media marketing team needs to keep pace with customers and competitors alike. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

From new social platforms and changing algorithms to the latest technologies and trends, marketing is unforgivingly fast-paced. It comes as no surprise that social media marketers are struggling to keep up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a recent survey by The Social Club, it was found that the accelerated pace of social platforms is becoming overwhelming for social media marketers. 81%<\/a> admitted that it was a struggle to stay on top of the latest trends and technologies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Other marketers struggle to develop the wide range of must-have marketing skills<\/a> needed to perform the diverse role. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a result, performance, knowledge, and skills gaps can grow within social media marketing teams\u2014and they can wreak havoc. Luckily, you can combat gaps by identifying and addressing them in a variety of ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, let\u2019s discuss how you can identify and tackle gaps within your team. And in doing so, how you improve productivity, future-proof your business, and equip your team to meet social media marketing goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Evaluate Your Team’s Skill Sets & Experience<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Before you can identify skills gaps, you need to establish the skills and experience your team currently possesses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, start by conducting an in-depth evaluation of your team\u2019s current skill sets, experience, and knowledge. This will present you with a comprehensive inventory of skills that you can align with your business goals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Are You Ready to Master Social Media?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Become a Certified Social Media Specialist and learn the newest strategies (by social platform) to draw organic traffic to your social media sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Ultimately, it helps you determine where your team thrives and where it falls short.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But how do you go about this? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a best practice, consider using several different methods of evaluation to get a reliable picture of your team\u2019s current skill set. For example, you might:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Create a Formal Test<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Formal tests can be used to assess the technical and theoretical competency of your employees. For example, you can test how effectively employees are able to use a certain tool. Or, you can assess how aptly they identify a particular framework and apply it to a situation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While this is a popular evaluation method, there are some limitations to consider. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Formal test conditions don\u2019t always present a reliable picture of proficiency. Some people perform worse in test conditions due to stress and anxiety. Other people might display competency in test settings but are unable to apply this knowledge in real-life scenarios. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, consider using formal tests alongside the two other evaluation methods that we\u2019re going to discuss below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conduct On-the-Job Observations<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Observing real-world performance is one of the best ways to accurately gauge your team\u2019s skill set. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the job, are your employees able to efficiently utilize technologies to meet goals? How effectively do they communicate and collaborate in fast-paced environments? Are they applying their skills, knowledge, and experience to a standard you\u2019d expect?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In-person assessments allow you to observe your team within the everyday work environment. Compared to formal tests, they can give you a more accurate representation of employee performance. But, there\u2019s still the risk that employees\u2019 nerves may alter their performance, which can skew the results of your evaluation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And of course, in-person observations simply aren\u2019t possible if you\u2019re a remote team. So, you might have to use another method: performance management technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Utilize Software to Measure & Evaluate Performance<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Instead of relying on in-person observations, you can enlist the help of software to track your employees\u2019 performance. This includes tracking whether employees meet project deadlines, reach benchmark KPIs, and are otherwise engaged in and attending to their responsibilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The data obtained from software can help you identify performance gaps. Performance gaps are just as critical to identify and address as skills and knowledge gaps, as they damage productivity and negatively impact your bottom line. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In many cases, performance and skills gaps overlap in some way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, underperforming employees might lack the skills or knowledge they need to perform their roles effectively. Similarly, employees who regularly miss work might lack motivation or feel dissatisfied in their role, which can arise as a result of a skills gap. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To combat this, an HR performance management system with an attendance tracker<\/a> feature enables you to track performance and attendance in real-time. Attendance software automates the process by identifying absence patterns and quickly alerting you to potentially struggling employees. As a result, you can uncover and tackle performance gaps more efficiently and effectively, all while supporting your employees and earning their loyalty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Establish Your Team’s Objectives<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Setting realistic, unified team goals and objectives can close performance gaps that may be hurting your productivity. When team objectives are misaligned or unachievable, employees disconnect from them. This leads to disengagement and poor motivation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Are You Ready to Master Social Media?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Become a Certified Social Media Specialist and learn the newest strategies (by social platform) to draw organic traffic to your social media sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, when you set clear, realistic objectives and empower your team to achieve them, you can boost productivity and close performance gaps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Establishing team objectives can also help you identify skills gaps. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s say that your team really wants to grow its followers on Pinterest. As you proceed to devise a Pinterest marketing<\/a> growth strategy to meet this objective, you might discover that your team doesn\u2019t know enough about Pinterest to execute this strategy effectively. So, you\u2019ve identified a skills gap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Armed with this knowledge, you can quickly target this skills gap by hiring a marketer with the relevant experience. Or you could upskill your employees\u2014more on this later. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Identify Areas for Skill Development<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now it\u2019s time to dig a little deeper and identify any specific skills gaps that exist within your social marketing team. Chances are, you\u2019ll find some\u201453%<\/a> of companies currently have a skills gap, according to research by SHRM. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skills gaps can arise for a variety of reasons. Talent shortages, poor training, lack of experience, and failure to keep pace with new technologies can all result in skills gaps that put your company at a competitive disadvantage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With a fine-tooth comb, inspect your team\u2019s digital marketing skills, experience, and objectives to illuminate any areas for improvement. For a social marketing team, the most pressing and common skills gaps include graphic design, videography, and photography.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Provided by The Social Club, here\u2019s an example of what social media marketers deem to be essential skills, compared to how many marketers feel that they actually possess these skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Provide Continuous Training & Development <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Before you rush to fill your skills gaps by hiring new employees, consider upskilling your current employees first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Upskilling is a learning and development strategy that involves providing continuous training to employees to help them learn new skills. There are a bunch of benefits to doing this\u2014it\u2019s more cost-effective, it boosts productivity, and it even increases employee satisfaction and retention. 71%<\/a> of employees who took part in employer-provided upskilling opportunities say that it increased their overall job satisfaction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That said, any old training program won\u2019t do. Training content needs to be delivered strategically, with a focus on keeping it engaging and interactive to maximize knowledge retention. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are some top tips for training your social media marketing team:<\/p>\n\n\n\n