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The differences between media planners and social media specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a media planner and a social media specialist. Additionally, a media planner has an average salary of $58,044, which is higher than the $51,584 average annual salary of a social media specialist.
The top three skills for a media planner include media planning, powerpoint and campaign performance. The most important skills for a social media specialist are social media marketing, instagram, and digital marketing.
| Media Planner | Social Media Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $58,044 | $51,584 |
| Hourly rate | $27.91 | $24.80 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 24,126 | 47,228 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 89% | Bachelor's Degree, 79% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A media planner is responsible for managing market campaigns and promotions for clients' advertising needs through various social media platforms and other mediums of communications. Media planners handle the brand's media presence, strategizing its maximum appeal to the target audience. They coordinate closely with the clients for the progress updates, as well as informing them of any adjustments, especially on meeting the public's interests and concerns. A media planner develops innovative techniques, analyzes market data, and manage campaign results, ensuring to meet the clients' objectives and goals.
A social media specialist is an individual who is responsible for creating and administering content on all social media platforms to build an audience and ensure customer engagement. By using platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, social media specialists must create content that resonates with the interests of the intended audience. They are required to understand social media metrics so that they can use the information to ensure success in their social media strategy. Social media specialists must also work with industry professionals and influencers via social media to create a strong network.
Media planners and social media specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Media Planner | Social Media Specialist | |
| Average salary | $58,044 | $51,584 |
| Salary range | Between $48,000 And $69,000 | Between $38,000 And $68,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | RPA | McKinsey & Company Inc |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Professional |
There are a few differences between a media planner and a social media specialist in terms of educational background:
| Media Planner | Social Media Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 89% | Bachelor's Degree, 79% |
| Most common major | Communication | Communication |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between media planners' and social media specialists' demographics:
| Media Planner | Social Media Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 39.2% Female, 60.8% | Male, 38.6% Female, 61.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 5.4% White, 66.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 11.9% Asian, 5.3% White, 67.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 12% |