Post job

Social media assistant vs social media specialist

The differences between social media assistants and social media specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a social media assistant, becoming a social media specialist takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a social media specialist has an average salary of $51,584, which is higher than the $44,134 average annual salary of a social media assistant.

The top three skills for a social media assistant include facebook, instagram and twitter. The most important skills for a social media specialist are social media marketing, instagram, and digital marketing.

Social media assistant vs social media specialist overview

Social Media AssistantSocial Media Specialist
Yearly salary$44,134$51,584
Hourly rate$21.22$24.80
Growth rate19%8%
Number of jobs47,80947,228
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 78%Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Average age3742
Years of experience64

What does a social media assistant do?

A Social Media Assistant manages a company's social media channels, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and other important platforms. Other duties include adding, editing, and monitoring content on social media platforms.

What does a social media specialist do?

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.

Social media assistant vs social media specialist salary

Social media assistants and social media specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Social Media AssistantSocial Media Specialist
Average salary$44,134$51,584
Salary rangeBetween $31,000 And $61,000Between $38,000 And $68,000
Highest paying CityEgg Harbor, NJWashington, DC
Highest paying stateWashingtonHawaii
Best paying companyJacobs Engineering GroupMcKinsey & Company Inc
Best paying industryEducationProfessional

Differences between social media assistant and social media specialist education

There are a few differences between a social media assistant and a social media specialist in terms of educational background:

Social Media AssistantSocial Media Specialist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 78%Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Most common majorCommunicationCommunication
Most common collegeUniversity of GeorgiaNorthwestern University

Social media assistant vs social media specialist demographics

Here are the differences between social media assistants' and social media specialists' demographics:

Social Media AssistantSocial Media Specialist
Average age3742
Gender ratioMale, 28.6% Female, 71.4%Male, 38.6% Female, 61.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.2% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 11.4% White, 66.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%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 Percentage10%12%

Differences between social media assistant and social media specialist duties and responsibilities

Social media assistant example responsibilities.

  • Manage YouTube channel by moderating comments, videos, and messages.
  • Create and manage the company's Instagram account for their cell phone charging bracelet.
  • Manage Facebook account including fielding inquiries and generating overall positive engagement.
  • Create social media content for PFW using Snapchat and Facebook.
  • Initiate and link own website, instagram, tumble, twitter accounts.
  • Create Pinterest images for new articles
  • Show more

Social media specialist example responsibilities.

  • Develop and manage blogger outreach program and KPIs.
  • Assist in managing the social network pages (Facebook/Twitter) as well as editing the site.
  • Create, curate, and manage all publish content (images, video and written).
  • Develop and help manage online links and search engine optimization (SEO) efforts to drive traffic to sites
  • Manage social media properties (Facebook, YouTube), including daily monitoring, posting, and content development.
  • Manage $15- $75K monthly PPC budget for 90 interactive agencies, totaling $24M annual ad spend.
  • Show more

Social media assistant vs social media specialist skills

Common social media assistant skills
  • Facebook, 18%
  • Instagram, 16%
  • Twitter, 14%
  • Photography, 4%
  • Graphic Design, 3%
  • Video Content, 3%
Common social media specialist skills
  • Social Media Marketing, 8%
  • Instagram, 8%
  • Digital Marketing, 7%
  • Facebook, 7%
  • Twitter, 6%
  • Social Media Management, 5%

Browse business and financial jobs