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How to hire a social media & marketing director

Social media & marketing director hiring summary. Here are some key points about hiring social media & marketing directors in the United States:

  • In the United States, the median cost per hire a social media & marketing director is $1,633.
  • It takes between 36 and 42 days to fill the average role in the US.
  • Human Resources use 15% of their expenses on recruitment on average.
  • On average, it takes around 12 weeks for a new social media & marketing director to become settled and show total productivity levels at work.

How to hire a social media & marketing director, step by step

To hire a social media & marketing director, you should clearly understand the skills and experience you are looking for in a candidate, and allocate a budget for the position. You will also need to post and promote the job opening to reach potential candidates. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to hire a social media & marketing director:

Here's a step-by-step social media & marketing director hiring guide:

  • Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
  • Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
  • Step 3: Make a budget
  • Step 4: Write a social media & marketing director job description
  • Step 5: Post your job
  • Step 6: Interview candidates
  • Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new social media & marketing director
  • Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a social media & marketing director do?

A social media and marketing director helps in the planning and development of social media campaigns for businesses wishing to connect with their customers online. The core skills that this professional should possess include the ability to establish and maintain good client relations and proficiency in marketing research and statistical analysis. The requirements to qualify for the position include possessing a bachelor's or master's degree in marketing or a related field and having proven work experience in the field of digital marketing.

Learn more about the specifics of what a social media & marketing director does
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  1. Identify your hiring needs

    The social media & marketing director hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

    Determine employee vs contractor status
    Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

    Hiring the perfect social media & marketing director also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

    This list presents social media & marketing director salaries for various positions.

    Type of Social Media & Marketing DirectorDescriptionHourly rate
    Social Media & Marketing DirectorAdvertising, promotions, and marketing managers plan programs to generate interest in products or services. They work with art directors, sales agents, and financial staff members.$24-53
    Director, Product MarketingA Director of Product Marketing directs the marketing activities of one or more products or product lines within the organization. They develop strong relationships with key customers.$46-98
    Marketing Team LeaderA marketing team leader is primarily in charge of supervising a marketing team, leading them to meet goals while enforcing the company's policies and regulations. As a marketing team leader, it is their duty to establish guidelines and objectives, manage budgets and schedules, assess the performance of staff, and lead the efforts in producing effective marketing materials... Show more$20-50
  2. Create an ideal candidate profile

    Common skills:
    • Social Media Marketing
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • Content Strategy
    • YouTube
    • Email Campaigns
    • Video Content
    • Social Content
    • Social Channels
    • Social Platforms
    • Community Outreach
    • Press Releases
    • Content Creation
    Check all skills
    Responsibilities:
    • Manage the Instagram feed, and bring the amount of followers from 32 to over 500 and climbing.
    • Develop and manage strategic B2C and B2B integrate marketing plans leveraging digital and traditional marketing efforts.
    • Utilize photography and graphic design techniques to create engaging advertisements.
    • Interview with visitors and sponsors, creating videos for YouTube channel.
    • Utilize websites such as Tweetdeck and Hootsuite to optimize the marketing campaign.
    • Produce client testimonial videos to be share on the website, YouTube, and social media.
    More social media & marketing director duties
  3. Make a budget

    Including a salary range in your social media & marketing director job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A social media & marketing director salary can vary based on several factors:
    • Location. For example, social media & marketing directors' average salary in south dakota is 46% less than in hawaii.
    • Seniority. Entry-level social media & marketing directors earn 54% less than senior-level social media & marketing directors.
    • Certifications. A social media & marketing director with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
    • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a social media & marketing director's salary.

    Average social media & marketing director salary

    $75,675yearly

    $36.38 hourly rate

    Entry-level social media & marketing director salary
    $51,000 yearly salary
    Updated December 14, 2025

    Average social media & marketing director salary by state

    RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
    1California$92,063$44
    2New York$77,967$37
    3Missouri$74,015$36
    4Arizona$69,976$34
    5Florida$65,835$32
    6Colorado$65,475$31
    7Georgia$63,823$31
    8Minnesota$63,157$30
    9Alabama$56,007$27

    Average social media & marketing director salary by company

    RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rateJob openings
    1Mattel$116,821$56.161
    2F45 Training$115,561$55.563
    3The Cordish Companies$111,101$53.41
    4Fontainebleau Miami Beach$98,708$47.4610
    5NBCUniversal$93,770$45.0849
    6Allianz Life$90,575$43.55
    7TopRank Marketing$82,084$39.462
    8Rooms To Go$79,118$38.04
    9MeUndies$74,793$35.96
    10YS Catering$72,855$35.03
    11Affinity Apparel$72,385$34.803
    12CEM$72,225$34.72
    13StackCommerce$71,900$34.57
    14Staffmark$71,820$34.53
    15Americorps$71,769$34.5011
    16Paradise Valley Christian Preparatory$50,229$24.15
  4. Writing a social media & marketing director job description

    A social media & marketing director job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a social media & marketing director job description:

    Social media & marketing director job description example

    Discovery Education is looking for a Director of Social Impact Marketing. You will oversee the marketing, educator engagement, and lead generation strategy for Discovery Education's corporate partnerships/social impact business unit. You will propel engagement and usage growth for our signature content partnerships and Social Impact Coalitions, as well as lead marketing-based revenue generation efforts to support the business development and sales teams, identifying and nurturing new prospects.

    The ideal candidate has 7+ years of experience in social impact, CSR, agency, corporate or non-profit marketing or development verticals. Must have experience juggling multiple deadline-oriented projects while collaborating with internal stakeholders across teams.

    The ideal candidate will also be data-driven, using analytics to inform decisions and strategy, drive execution, and optimize efforts in coordination with Analytics and Marketing Operations. Our social impact partners are diverse - big brands, associations, sports teams, thought leaders - which provides candidates the unique opportunity to work across a broad array of industries, disciplines and subject areas.
    What You'll Do

    The right candidate for this dynamic position has a growth mindset and thrives in a high-energy environment where attention is shared between teacher engagement and corporate partner acquisition. The role will include both client-facing work and tactical marketing efforts, with ongoing collaboration with our internal business leaders, account teams, marketing services teams, and external partners with the goal of driving amplification that measurably builds program engagement and usage, as well as supports the identification and nurturing of new and existing corporate prospects. This role requires the ability to think strategically, connect the dots, productively collaborate, understand, and activate the power of merchandising and the proven ability to translate ideas into immediate, measurable action, including:

    Marketing Strategy - Serve as the liaison between Marketing and the Social Impact team, working collectively to identify and solve challenges, aligning on operational standards and providing guidance on best practices related to both engagement and acquisition.

    Partnership Support - Work closely with the Social Impact account team leaders to represent marketing and communicate strategic marketing efforts with key social impact partners and in conjunction with new program launches, renewals and other program milestones.

    Program Engagement Strategy - Collaborate with engagement manager, marketing services teams & account services leaders to support measurable program success through holistic strategic activation plans that maximize educator engagement as a key driver for program success. Strategic plans include maximizing external partnerships, elevating content through DE direct-to-teacher channels, aligning with DE learning communities, implementing special events and developing targeted activation across DE's digital networks

    Revenue Generation Strategy - Collaborate with the global marketing program manager, the social impact business development and sales teams, social impact leadership and marketing services teams to plan campaigns and strategic merchandising of activities and timely/relevant moments to generate new leads and nurture current leads, ultimately supporting new and renewal revenue goals.

    Requirements

    7+ years of related experience with a Bachelor's degree and/or Master's degree.

    Strong interpersonal, presentation, organizational and verbal/written communication skills, attention to detail and the ability to manage a diverse workload.

    A proven track record of marketing strategic planning and management, project management and exceptional client relations.

    Leadership role in a sales environment, experience in the CSR, social impact, or national nonprofit industry a plus; strong understanding of evolving digital landscape as it relates to digital media, website engagement, analytics and overall digital and partner marketing strategy.

    Experience leading day-to-day relationships with external partners at all levels; strong work ethic driven by a sense of urgency, flawless organization skills, and ability to inspire others to act and fulfill Discovery Education's mission.

    Clear understanding of industry trends, current events, anything that may impact the business by reading professional publications, researching all available prospect/product resources and participating in professional organizations.

    Proficiency in suite of Microsoft Office, CRM/Salesforce preferred, Vidyard, Looker, Airtable, Google Analytics and social platform experience is a plus.

    Ability to manage/prioritize multiple tasks.

    Demonstrate a problem solving/solution-oriented approach.

    Legal right to work in the United States.

    Benefits

    Flexible PTO.

    Paid holidays include Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Eve.

    Generous parental leave for primary and secondary caregivers.

    Annual education and professional development dollars.

    Major medical, vision, and dental (multiple choices).

    Summer hours and company recharge days.

    Company-paid life insurance and short- and long-term disability.

    Fitness and cell phone reimbursement.

    Pet insurance.

    Company paid volunteer hours.

    Discovery Education is an equal opportunity employer. Discovery Education is committed to being an employer of choice, not just a good place to work, but a great and inclusive place to work. To that end, we strive to recruit and maintain a workforce that meaningfully represents the diverse and culturally rich communities that we serve. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to their race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, protected veteran status or disabled status or, genetic information.
  5. Post your job

    To find social media & marketing directors for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

    • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
    • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any social media & marketing directors they would recommend.
    • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level social media & marketing directors with the right educational background.
    • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.
    Post your job online:
    • Post your social media & marketing director job on Zippia to find and recruit social media & marketing director candidates who meet your exact specifications.
    • Use field-specific websites such as swipe files, exit five, marketinghire, american marketing association.
    • Post a job on free websites.
  6. Interview candidates

    To successfully recruit social media & marketing directors, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

    It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

    The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

  7. Send a job offer and onboard your new social media & marketing director

    Once you've selected the best social media & marketing director candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

    It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

    To prepare for the new social media & marketing director first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

  8. Go through the hiring process checklist

    • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
    • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
    • Define job responsibilities and requirements
    • Establish budget and timeline
    • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
    • Write job description
    • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
    • Promote the job internally
    • Process applications through applicant tracking system
    • Review resumes and cover letters
    • Shortlist candidates for screening
    • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
    • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
    • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
    • Conduct background checks on top candidates
    • Check references of top candidates
    • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
    • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
    • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
    • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
    • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
    • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)
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How much does it cost to hire a social media & marketing director?

Before you start to hire social media & marketing directors, it pays to consider both the one-off costs like recruitment, job promotion, and onboarding, as well as the ongoing costs of an employee's salary and benefits. While most companies that hire social media & marketing directors pay close attention to the initial cost of hiring, ongoing costs are much more significant in the long run.

Social media & marketing directors earn a median yearly salary is $75,675 a year in the US. However, if you're looking to find social media & marketing directors for hire on a contract or per-project basis, hourly rates typically range between $24 and $53.

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