Online Community Manager Job Description

The digital age has changed how we interact with companies and purchase items. The internet provides a broader platform for advertisers, which means lower prices, better deals, and incredibly fast-growing communities and social media pages. 

This has made it essential for companies to have an online presence, but with such a large number of followers, content and brand image need to be organized and delivered with intent. The online community manager must be a moderator and spokesperson for the brand and is responsible for building trust, positioning the brand, and improving user engagement.

Since the online community manager’s job is to increase the visibility of your business on and offline, they must be able to build connections with people, recommend and share your business on social media and entertain and answer queries from a great community of fans.

Online Community Manager Responsibilities

To fully engage with the online community consistently and effectively, business owners rely heavily on community managers acting as their gatekeepers, as the support they provide is essential in building a loyal audience.

Moreover, community managers can help achieve and foster engagement by creating a unique offer based on specific models and psychographics that resonate with your target audience, allowing a brand to grow significantly. That’s what we’d call an inspiration!

This position doesn’t require an advanced degree but rather the skills that anyone can learn through various multidisciplinary studies. This means that no matter your background in journalism or public relations, you can give this a shot and see how things panned out without omitting to review the job description for the position.

Online Community Manager: Who Stands to Benefit?

An online community manager can be a game-changer for various organizations, from tech startups to educational institutions. Here’s a breakdown of who can really benefit from their skills:

Small Businesses: For small businesses, engaging directly with customers on social media or forums can dramatically boost customer loyalty and satisfaction. An online community manager helps keep these interactions positive and productive, ensuring that customers feel heard and valued.

Educational Institutions: Schools and universities can use community managers to bridge communication gaps between students, faculty, and alumni. By facilitating discussions and fostering a sense of community online, they can improve student engagement and create an inclusive environment.

Non-Profit Organizations: For non-profits, community managers play a crucial role in building and maintaining relationships with donors, volunteers, and beneficiaries. They help maintain transparency and trust through regular updates and engagement strategies.

Tech Companies: In the fast-paced world of technology, community managers help maintain buzz and excitement around new products and updates. They also provide invaluable feedback from users to product development teams.

An online community manager not only keeps the conversation flowing but also helps tailor the community’s tone to be welcoming and informative.

Online Community Manager Job Description

An online community manager is responsible for creating, developing, and managing online communities that revolve around a specific brand or purpose. This role requires various skills, such as communication, people management, and customer service experience. It is important for an online community manager to be able to build relationships with their audience and provide them with a sense of belonging. They also need to be able to manage their time effectively to complete the most important tasks.

The following are some phrases that we can find in an excellent online community manager job description:

• Work as part of a team
• Understand your role within the company
• Supervise other staff members
• Build rapport with your audience

What’s the difference between an Online Community Manager and a Social Media Manager?

Online Community Managers and Social Media Managers are both responsible for managing and engaging with the online community. However, they have different responsibilities and tasks.

An Online Community Manager is responsible for creating a safe space for people to discuss their thoughts, feelings, ideas, and experiences. They also manage the online community’s growth by building relationships, leading discussions, and creating content.

A Social Media Manager is responsible for managing the social media channels of a company or organization to create a positive brand experience across various platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc.

As online community and social media managers, we are responsible for engaging our online communities to their fullest potential. While the tasks of these two roles may appear similar, they are distinct in the way they interact with the audience.

An online community manager is responsible for the entire digital brand strategy, while a social media manager focuses on communicating as a brand and promoting products and services. Depending on the company, these roles may merge, but they still carry different responsibilities.

We must remain mindful of our tone, image and approach when engaging with our online community and strive to put forward the best brand image possible while allowing the customer’s voice to be heard.

Tasks of an Online Community Manager

While the list of functions is not exhaustive, here are some of the essential responsibilities of an online community manager.

Managing a community

Online communities have the potential to be incredibly useful, engaging, and inspiring. However, managing one can be quite a challenge. Creating a website that can help you reach your audience and build a community around your brand takes a lot of time and effort. That is why community managers are so important.

They are responsible for monitoring user engagement levels, setting community guidelines, and identifying influencers in the industry for possible collaborations. In short, community managers are tasked with optimizing the company’s digital community for success.

Direct user interaction

The responsibilities of an Online Community Manager include interacting directly with community members, addressing and solving issues, providing updates on the status of projects, etc. This means being respectful and courteous in all interactions, no matter the topic or customer.

Community managers should be aware of their biases and strive to be neutral and open-minded when engaging with users. They should also be patient and take the time to listen to the users’ concerns and questions. By showing respect and understanding, community managers can build trust and create a positive environment for users to engage in.

Solve customer queries

It is good practice to have clear guidelines in place to help better manage users and ensure all community members follow the rules. Despite this, clashes can still occur between members, and it is the responsibility of the community manager to take action and make the final decision or mediate on any issues.

To help with this, automated tools such as content moderation platforms are used to monitor the community and ensure that policies are followed. This allows the community manager to oversee the moderation process while still having the ability to take action when needed. By taking advantage of these productive tools, a community manager keep a brand community a safe and welcoming environment for all members.

Managing social media

As an online community manager, it is your responsibility to oversee and manage all or most of the social media platforms, monitor the growth of the online community and maintain its content through posts, comments, and requests from followers. 

To stay ahead of the competition, a great OCM will keep watch on industry trends and address any press inquiries and legal issues regarding the brand’s image online.

Curate brand content accurately

From creating and curating content for the brand to crafting engaging posts for social media, an OCM’s primary purpose is to create a strong and positive online presence for a brand or company and shape how customers perceive their products.

OCMs are in charge of publishing content on the site and driving organic traffic, so the accuracy and relevance of the information are of utmost importance. Brands expect perfection and OCMs must deliver, making sure that the website, blog, and social media platforms are consistent and up-to-date.

Online Community Manager Job Description Sample

Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

The role of the Community Manager in our company is to construct and oversee the online community. This entails formulating and implementing social media strategies, crafting captivating content, and promptly and effectively addressing customer inquiries. We are seeking an exceptional candidate who possesses a genuine enthusiasm for social media, a profound comprehension of virtual communities, and exceptional communication abilities.

OCM Responsibilities:

1. Devise and implement social media strategies with the goal of enhancing brand visibility and fostering engagement.
2. Generate compelling content for social media platforms, encompassing text, images, and videos.
3. Address customer inquiries promptly and assistively.
4. Monitor and analyze social media metrics to assess the effectiveness of campaigns.
5. Organize and actively participate in both online and offline events to cultivate a thriving community.
6. Collaborate with various departments to ensure consistent brand representation.
7. Stay abreast of the latest social media trends and adopt best practices.

Qualifications needed:

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, or a related field.
• Over 2 years of experience in social media marketing.
• Profound understanding of virtual communities.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.
• Capability to work autonomously and collaboratively within a team.
• Effective project management skills, adept at handling multiple initiatives simultaneously.
• Genuine passion for social media and online communities.

Benefits:

• Competitive salary and benefits package
• Opportunity to work with a talented team of professionals
• Chance to make a real impact on the company’s success

OCM Average Salary

The salary for an online community manager starts at $35,000 for entry-level and can get up to $44,214 or more for a medium to an experienced candidate. You can work your way up to a great wage with passion and dedication, and big brands often pay more for experienced candidates specialising in multiple domains, so it’s good to have some extra skills you can leverage.