12 Jul 2011
Facebook: Community Manager Game Changer
Now that I have made the leap out of account services and into the content and community management world, I have been soaking up every bit of info I can find about the community management landscape.
That said, I came across this great post from Britta Heer (head of digital at Edelman in Germany and is Jasper Krog is a consultant at Edelman Digital) and thought I would share: How Facebook Redefined The Community Manager.
A very good read if you have a few minutes to kill. I especially gravitated towards the ”Necessary Areas of Expertise” section which highlights what you should look for in a community manager - or - what your skillset should be if you are a community manager. Why the list? It’s because many companies are way behind the rapid development of the community manager profession and they leave it to programmers and technical specialists in the field. That, or they hire community managers that have online chops, but little strategic expertise.
Here are Britta’s ‘necessary areas of expertise’ for community managers:
Strategic
Community management on Facebook is not reduced to individual tactics. It maintains an overall objective that is relevant for the entire company. The community manager must be able to steer content management for the community in terms of strategic objectives. Community Management on Facebook runs throughout the entire value chain.
Social
In the role as mediator between the business and the community, the community manager is not just facilitating and moderating the fan page. The community manager is also responsible for responding to the feedback from fans, working to prevent crises and leading the community. This means a community manager needs to bring all of the social skills of a conventional manager: motivation, leadership and conflict resolution.
Emotional Intelligence
From the way fans are addressed (formally or informally) to the basic tonality and theme of contributions up to the frequency and occasions for posts, it is the responsibility of the community manager to represent the company authentically. This requires high emotional intelligence.
Project Management
As the interface between company and community, the community manager governs the process of dialogue between companies and stakeholders. Additionally, the community manager is responsible for the compilation of valid key data to measure the success of community dialogue. This requires sound project management skills, as complex communication processes are planned, managed and evaluated throughout the value chain.
Long-Term Thinking
Businesses that invest in dialogue with stakeholders are engaging in a long-term process. An important area of responsibility for the community manager is the ongoing development of the relationship between the business and community through new content, interactions and tactics.
Britta also touched on ‘The Community Manager Of Tomorrow’ saying it is possible that community mangers will no longer manage a few, large communities but rather many smaller groups. This is based on the predicted trend for the fragmentation of communities. She closed off with:
“The job profile of community manager 3.0 will surely increase in complexity, as fan communities of companies will grow with increasing Internet use and present their demands and requirements to the company. It’s all the more important that the strategic relevance and spectrum of tasks for the community manager be granted and accepted within the company.”
What are your thoughts? Do you agree or disagree with Britta’s sentiments on what makes a successful, rockstar community manager?
