There are different ways and spaces to make money and find work, including social media. Anyone with a smartphone can be a user of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat, Instagram, or YouTube. Although these networks have been used to share entertainment, they can also be used for professional purposes. Our devices are filled with personal and commercial information, and the key is to know how to navigate between that information and focus on the target.
The Potential of Social Media to Find Jobs
Social media offers many possibilities to help you solve your source of income. In the networks, you can find remote or on-site job vacancies and, if you are an expert in their management, you can aspire to positions such as Community Manager. Also, if you are a very active user and have many followers, the monetization of your content can be considerable.
On the other hand, you can generate content or marketing projects. The possibility of sharing content and interacting with people worldwide makes them an excellent tool to develop a presence on the web.
How Do We Use Social Media?
Most people with a smartphone spend much time on social media, and to prove it, you need to check in the settings how much time you spend on each of the apps you have installed. The most used are YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.
Nowadays, social media is a space for different activities. You can keep in touch with friends and family, document your trips and outings, and expose a bit of your life to the world. You can also find content with focuses such as education, sports, media, entertainment, and in various formats such as video, image, or text.
Identity and Personal Branding
To make social media a revenue tool, you need to know how to use it because it requires a different strategy.
First of all, it is essential to create a personal brand to get recruiters an idea of that person. Investing time and dedication in creating a specific profile when looking for a job is an excellent strategy to attract attention.
It is essential to give a professional image that reflects an interest in your work area and, therefore, an eagerness to learn more every day. LinkedIn is an excellent option to publish courses or certifications you are taking. It works as a new way to present your resume and, at the same time, share content that makes your activity and interests visible.
Social networks are also a good source of information; for example, you can research a company and learn about its work culture and values. This advantage helps narrow down our choices and shows us which company we are interested in working with.
How to Generate Income in Social Media?
It is essential to know each platform’s monetization and how to achieve it. Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter have a similar monetization by publication; YouTube monetizes by videos and a certain amount of views.
Instagram, Having Followers and Constant Content
To monetize on Instagram, the most popular network among influencers, you need to have a community of followers and post quality content that resonates with your audience. It is essential to be constantly active on the platform and post content often to engage with the audience. You can also monetize publications and be sponsored by brands to have more reach.
YouTube: Monetize Your Channel
You need to meet four requirements on YouTube to start monetizing your content. You must have at least 1000 subscribers, accumulate 4 thousand hours of playback and comply with YouTube’s Channel Monetization Policies.
YouTube channels have a theme or several established themes the audience identifies with. Based on the views of your videos, you will start getting paid for each one of them. Brands can also sponsor you to generate more income in this network.
It is essential to stay within the YouTube community guidelines because not all content or topics are monetized.
Twitter and LinkedIn, Dialogue and Professionalism
Each platform offers several ways to look for a job because we can show different facets of our personality in each one.
On LinkedIn, the trend is to present a more formal and professional side. Your profile works as a resume, showing your skills, abilities, academic background, and experience.
This makes it much easier for recruiters to scan through users to find the profile that fits the position they are looking to fill. Many people tend to have their profile in English to give it more reach.
On Twitter, text and opinions are predominant; people are associated with their positions and points of view. The most influential business people and entrepreneurs tweet about their opinions on current issues because they achieve a greater reach on this platform.
Tweets should be 280 characters maximum, so if you ever need to talk about a more extended topic, threads are created to keep the conversation open on the subject.
Instagram and YouTube, the Platforms of the New Celebrities
YouTube and Instagram are two platforms on which influencers were born, seen as a new type of celebrity. Their reach is extremely massive, so they become media figures. Due to the number of followers, they can monetize their content. Also, they often promote products, which is known as influencer marketing. Depending on the number of followers, they can charge from $100 to $50,000 for advertising.
People can show a little more of their personality on YouTube because of the format. Usually, the videos on this platform are in slightly more relaxed or casual environments, in which people are willing to be entertained, laugh, and relax for a while. In some cases, there is also academic and outreach content.
Mexico’s most-followed and highest-paid YouTubers are Luisito Comunica with 32 million subscribers, Los Polinesios with 27 million, Yuya with 24 million, Kimberly Loaiza with 31 million, and Escorpión Dorado with 8 million subscribers. They have gained fame for their varied content and earn between $3,600 and $147,000 per month.
On Instagram, people are a bit more relaxed and post about their best days. This social media platform places much emphasis on images, sharing moments, visual metaphors, anecdotes, etc. Currently, among the Instagram influencers with the most followers in Mexico are Kimberly Loaiza (33.4 million), Luisito Comunica (31.1 million), Juanpa Zurita (28.1 million), Thalia (18.8 million), and Yuya (17.1 million).
An influencer with more than one million followers on Instagram can earn $100,000 to $250,000 annually, implying approximately $10,000 per post.
Social Media Marketing and Monetization
Each social media platform has different ways to monetize your content. For this reason, it is easier to generate revenue from your computer. Companies have a lot of content and posts that you can monetize to make more profit. Many companies are even looking for freelancers to market their content on social media, mainly Instagram and Facebook, to monetize it.
About Affiliate Marketing
Another good strategy for content on social media is affiliate marketing, which consists of an affiliate of a company promoting a product in exchange for a commission for each sale or action that leads to their site. In affiliate marketing, the company announces the products or services and enables them to win.
Community Manager, a World of Possibilities
Knowing how to use social media is a skill that gives access to online jobs. The Community Manager (CM) is a clear example of this, as they are in charge of building and managing the online community around a brand and its value on the Internet. Its function is to create and maintain stable and lasting relationships with users through social media.
The CM must listen, intervene, disseminate and evaluate what is posted on a company’s social platforms. It is essential to be updated daily and have self-learning skills like social media change with trends.
There are many other jobs related to social media that, in general terms, are similar to what a Community Manager does. To name a few, we can mention:
- Social Media Editor
- Social Media Manager
- Content Creator
- Marketing and Social Media Coordinator
- Social Media Analyst
If you are interested in knowing more about these vacancies, take a look at this list on LinkedIn.
Working in the Digital Era
Nowadays, it is much easier to find jobs on networks and work from home on your computer, but it is essential to consider the strategy and the social media in which you want to get a job. You also have to outline a personal brand that your recruiters or followers seek to project. In this way, social media could solve your income.
Translated by Shebatt Quinones on the 15th of February, 2022.
