INDUSTRY JOURNAL Vol . 8
5 . Organisational skills
For many community managers , the job consists of managing multiple events , tracking feedback and then sharing this information with your employer . This work can be onerous , but remaining organised can help professionals stay on top of their responsibilities . Community managers must be able to multitask , and that means staying organised – it ’ s a very fast-paced job and there are a lot of things thrown at you at once , and you need to stay on top of it .
Use multiple spreadsheets updated daily with data across a range of metrics for a variety of people and terms . One wrong entry can throw off goals across the whole team , affecting other teams and projects . Whether you are planning an event , managing vendors , reviewing a contract or creating a board pack , success or failure is in the detail .
Using humour to show all the different roles management play - ARC Conference Silver Lakes 2022
6 . Adaptability
Flexibility in the workplace is key for a successful community manager . The work this professional does will often extend beyond creating conversations with a brand ’ s members . For many , this means carrying the responsibilities of multiple jobs .
Adaptability is important because the community manager wears a lot of hats . On any given day , they must be a marketer , a PR person , an administrator and then a communications guy who must react to a ‘ story ’.
7 . Level-headed attitude
There are going to be situations , often on a daily basis , when a member of the community attacks the brand . As the community manager , it is vital that your response alleviates the situation , and doesn ’ t intensify it .
The problem is that you ’ ve got the keys to the brand ’ s voice . Anything you say on behalf of the brand can and will be held against you and can be inferred as the brand ’ s perspective . You must have a cool head and remember that the member is usually attacking the brand , not you .
8 . Background in analytics
In each industry , the way a community manager handles analytics may differ , but it ’ s vital that this professional is educated about how communities are responding to engagement and can determine what efforts are working or not working . You can measure the metrics of engagement . If you can ’ t measure it , you aren ’ t doing it right . Build tracking links , look at your website traffic , measure your reach and impressions . Have a goal and reach it .
Use analytics to figure out what the community is not telling you anecdotally . The community isn ’ t always going to tell you what they want . They ’ ll tell you one thing but then want another . You need to look at things to see if they ’ re working , because people aren ’ t always going to tell you .
9 . Ability to enable the community
One of the most important responsibilities of a community manager ’ s job is not to continue to push the brand ’ s message , but to empower the members and give them a voice . If we ’ re just talking about ourselves , eventually people will turn away . The only reason we are successful is because of our members . We want to try to reward them as much as possible .
Roughly 70 % of all comments made by members are in response to other comments . We want to turn those comments into the conversation . You should want to give the members a voice on equal footing .
10 . Passion for the brand
In many ways , the community manager is the eyes and ears of an estate . But this professional is also responsible for being the voice of the company , and the members want to interact with someone who loves the brand as much as they do . If a community manager is just going through the motions , he or she is not going to be successful and the company will ultimately suffer .
Passion is important . At the end of the day , you are the representative of that brand . You must eat , sleep and breathe the brand .
Marlene Barnardt , Chief Whip George Municipality and Willem Jacobs CEO Kingswood Golf Estate
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