The Influencer Whisperer's Guide to Being a Woman in Social Media Marketing

Seven years ago I was doing advertising sales for a publishing company when an opportunity came up for me to manage that company’s social media outlets. My only qualification? I was the youngest person in the office. Since then, I’ve managed to turn that small opportunity into a prolific career. I love social media. I’m obsessed with it.

Fast forward to this week, when I was able to sit in on a Twitter chat hosted by Social Media Today called “Women in Social Media”. The topic piqued my interest right away, and as I joined the hashtag, I was inundated with Tweets by women who are in my profession.

As Tweet by Tweet scrolled down my newsfeed, I was amazed at all of the shared experiences I seemed to have had with these perfect strangers (the wonderful thing about social media!). Not all of these experiences were good, however. Some of them were quite cringe-worthy. Yet they were still common ground for many of us.

Here’s a taste of some of the common experiences women face when working in social media:

#1: Not taken seriously

#2: Feeling siloed

#3: Being a “girl”

It’s sad to say that I’m sure there are many professions in which these types of behaviors and attitudes are experienced by women.

Luckily, we ended the conversation on a lighter note, and looked to the future of social media and how women will play a part in shaping that future. Plus, we offered some advice for newcomers to the world of professional social media management.

Take a look: