Social Media Rates: How Much Should Freelancers Charge?

For many freelancers, one of the hardest parts of the job is determining what to charge clients. Being a freelancer means you’re your own boss, which is great until it’s time to set your rates. How do you know whether you’re charging too much? Are you underselling yourself? We’ve got some ideas for how to figure out what the right rate is for you.

What to Charge for Social Media Management Packages

Takeaways
Determine rates based on expertise and scope of work.
Research industry standards to gauge competitive pricing.
Clearly communicate the value of your services to clients.
Justify rates with success stories and business growth potential.
Regularly review and adjust rates to stay competitive and reflective of experience.

Table of Contents

Consider Your Value

Setting your rates is figuring out what you’re worth and is the best way to do this is to think about what sets you apart from other freelancers. Are you more experienced than most? Do you have a certain flair or style that others don’t possess? What kind of training have you had, and how does it make your work unique? The more specialized your skillset or expertise, the more valuable you are—and the more likely it is that clients will pay up to get their hands on your work.

Understanding how to determine the right rates as a freelance social media manager is crucial for your success. Learn more about how much freelancers should charge and set a competitive pricing strategy for your services.

Quality of your work

The most important thing is to be confident in the quality of your work knowing that your clients value what you do will give you peace of mind as you negotiate rates and helps ensure that they’ll want to keep working with you.

Ask Around

When in doubt, ask around. If you’re wondering how much your work is worth, talk to other freelancers who specialize in similar areas and see what they charge their clients. You can also check social media sites like Facebook and LinkedIn to find freelance groups where people discuss their rates, though keep.

Make Your Own Decision

When you’re a freelancer, you have to make a lot of decisions on your own. One of the first things you have to decide if you want to be a freelancer is how much to charge. Sounds easy enough, right? You might think, “I can just look up what other people are charging and charge that.’’

Experience or skillset

If you’ve just graduated from school, or have only been freelancing for a few months or years, you won’t be able to charge as much as someone with 5-10 years of experience under their belt.

That’s not to say that you can’t get good results if you’re brand new, but it’s just a matter of what other clients and potential clients expect to pay. You may have to lower your rates until you’ve gained more experience and can prove that you can get results.

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Location

Honestly, there are many factors that go into determining how much to charge for your services as a social media manager. But one of the biggest is where you or your client are located. If you’re in New York City, for example, you can probably charge more than if you’re in Boise, Idaho.

That’s because larger cities typically have more people working in the same field (and charging higher rates), so it makes sense that companies would be willing to pay more money for someone with the right skillset.

Furthermore, the cost of living is often higher in large metropolitan areas than it is elsewhere: rent costs more; food and gasoline cost more; etc. Naturally, those increased expenses have to be accounted for when setting rates. Finally, there’s also just an assumption that people who make more money will be able to pay more but whether they actually can is another matter.

When it comes to pricing your social media freelancing services, there’s no easy answer—but there are some basic guidelines you can use to make sure you’re not undercharging or overcharging yourself.

Project Scope or Timeframe

How big is the project? How long will it take? If it’s a month-long project with a lot of deliverables, that’s going to take considerably more time than a one-time post.

Frequency of Deliverables

If you’re managing a client’s social media account, how often are you expected to post? How many accounts are you going to manage (usually only one)? How much content do you need to create each week? Will this be a one-person job, or will your client have someone on their end contributing content as well?

Deciding on your pricing can be challenging as a freelance social media manager. Check out this guide on how to determine freelance social media rates to make informed decisions and ensure your value is accurately reflected.

Client Size

If you’re working with an enterprise company, they’re probably going to be able to pay more than if you’re working with a couple of friends who just started their own business and don’t have much capital. It’s okay to ask about your clients’ revenue directly if that helps you figure out what they can afford—but don’t assume that a smaller company won’t be able to pay as much as an enterprise.

Additionally, social media is an important part of any company’s marketing strategy. If you are not using social media to its fullest potential, you’re doing yourself a disservice. There are many ways to use social media, and some of them can be more beneficial than others. To help you determine what’s best for your business. Hereunder, we’ve put together and analyzed a list of social media strategies that we recommend:

Strategies To Make Your Social Media Presence Active

1. Be Active On All The Platforms You Use

If you have a Snapchat account, but only post once every few months, maybe it’s time to delete that account and focus on something else. You’re not doing yourself any favors by having an account somewhere if you aren’t going to use it. It’s better to pick three or four platforms that suit your brand and make sure your presence is consistent across them than having a presence on all of them, but an inconsistent one.

2. Don’t Be Afraid To Share Content With Others

Sometimes the best way to show your audience that you value them is by sharing the content they create with their own followers and friends. This works especially well when trying to grow a community around your brand it shows your audience that they’re more than just a consumer, but rather an active participants in the community you’re building online, and around your brand in general.

3. Write Interesting Headlines

Headlines and subheadlines are how people decide whether or not they want to read a post. They’re also how people decide whether or not to share an article. So the headline of your post is incredibly important, and you should spend as much time crafting it as you do the rest of the post. If someone sees a boring headline, they’re likely to scroll right by it without reading or sharing it.

4. Use Images To Tell A Story

When you’re posting on social media, you should always include an image. Posts with images get roughly 90% more engagement than those without them. And if you can combine that with a compelling headline, then people are even more likely to stop and check out what you have to say. Images should be relevant to the topic of your post and instantly tell the viewer what it’s about.

5. Find Your Voice

If you want people to read what you post, you need to find a voice that resonates with them. People are attracted to things they think are interesting, so don’t just write about the product write about the people who use it!

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6. Post Interesting Content

What makes your product interesting? Do you have funny stories from its development? Did anything unusual happen during its manufacturing? Is there some kind of inside joke about how it works or why you made it? Write about these things! A good rule of thumb is this: If it’s not something that would make you stop scrolling through Instagram and pay attention, then don’t post it.

7. Post Useful Information

If you sell shoes online, put together a list of tips on how to choose the right running shoe for you. If you run a gardening business, put together some videos with tips on how to get the best flowers in specific weather conditions. Giving your followers something they can use elevates them from being mere customers or fans—it turns them into real partners in what you’re doing.

8. Respond Quickly

If someone reaches out on social media, they expect a quick response. Ignoring or forgetting about their message might leave them feeling ignored or neglected—which is obviously not good for your brand. Reply within 24 hours, 48 at the absolute latest.

9. Be Proactive

Don’t wait for people to come to you go out there and find them! If you see someone talking about a product or service like yours, don’t be afraid to reach out and say hi.

10. Create Interesting Content

This is really the key to keeping people interested in your company’s social media presence. If you don’t have anything interesting going on, people will lose interest quickly, and find other things to occupy their time with while they scroll through Instagram or Facebook. Take pictures, shoot videos, ask questions—whatever it takes! Just make sure it’s engaging and fun, so people want to stick around and get involved.

11. Use Hashtags Appropriately

Hashtags are everywhere these days, but that doesn’t mean you should just throw them on anything. Look at what your competitors are doing with hashtags so you can learn from their successes and failures. Once you’ve got a strategy for how you want to use hashtags, make sure to include them in any posts you publish on social media.

12. Comment On Related Pages

This is a great way to get noticed by people who might not have heard of your brand yet! Just look for other pages in your industry and engage with them in a meaningful way—you can ask questions or share insights, or simply thank them for sharing something helpful or interesting with the community (for instance, if they post an article that makes a good point or provides some useful information). Then sit back and see what happens!

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Final Thoughts

There is no one answer as to what a freelancer should charge, as every project and client are different. Of course, the skill level of the designer obviously comes into play, but even experienced designers may have wildly varying rates.

This is because each designer has his or her own method and philosophy of pricing projects. Regardless of your method, the most important thing to remember is that you have to be comfortable with your rate. If you’re happy charging $50/hour, then who’s to say that you shouldn’t?

People Also Ask

How Much Should Freelancers Charge For Social Media Management?

Well, that depends on a lot of factors! The most important thing to consider is the number of channels you’re managing and maintaining. For one channel, you’ll probably want to charge in the $25-$30/hour range.

But if you’re managing three or more channels, you can charge up to $50-$70/hour. Different types of channels can also affect how much you charge. For example, Facebook tends to be the lowest-paying social media platform, while Instagramming companies will pay more—in fact, it’s not uncommon for them to pay up to twice as much as Facebook companies pay.

Another consideration is your experience level and the time commitment involved. If this is your first time managing a client’s social media presence, it might be worth taking on a lower-paying project just so you have something for your portfolio. But if a client wants you to manage their Instagram presence full-time and travel with them worldwide? You can probably go ahead and ask for a higher rate than what we suggested above (as long as it’s reasonable).

How Do I Decide On A Rate?

You decide your rate based on your experience and what other freelancers are charging. You want to know what’s in the market, so it’s a good idea to look at job boards like Upwork and see what other freelancers are charging for posts. It’s also important to think about whether you’re in a high-cost-of-living area or not since that can affect rates as well.

How Many Posts Should I Make?

It varies by client, but it’s a good idea to post at least once per day on Facebook and Twitter and twice per day on Instagram. This gives users a good chance of seeing content but doesn’t flood their feeds with too many posts all at once (which could be overwhelming).

What’s The Best Way To Charge For Social Media?

We’ve found that there are two good ways to charge for social media work: by project or by the hour. If you’re charging by project, you’ll have a set rate that you bill clients at once every month. If you’re charging by the hour, then your client will pay per hour of work. This can be easier to keep track of and more flexible, but it can also lead to bigger swings in income if your client has a lot of work for you one month and less the next.

How Do I Decide How Much To Charge?

The first step is figuring out how much you need to earn every month to live comfortably. Then, figure out how many hours you want to work—and how many hours you actually can work—per week. Once you know those numbers, take your monthly income goal and divide it by your weekly hours worked. This is your hourly rate! You can always adjust it up or down depending on whether or not your clients have budgets that fit into this range.

How Long Will It Take To Raise My Rates?

When you’re just starting out, raising your rates can feel like such a huge undertaking. But the truth is, you should be regularly increasing your rates to keep up with the economy. You can do this every six months or so, by about 10% each time, until you get to a place where you’re comfortable and not hurting for business.

What Should I Do If I’m Not Sure How Much To Charge?

If you’re not sure, start low. This way, even if you underprice yourself, you’ll have some wiggle room to raise your rates as you get more experience in the field and grow your business. A good rule of thumb is to start out on the lower end of the spectrum—say, $20 an hour—and increase your rates by 10% every six months. That way, by the time you’ve raised them three times, they’ll be at a good level for someone with five years of experience in the field.

How Much Should I Charge Per Post?

In general, you should charge between $20-$200 per hour, depending on your skills and experience. The more experience you have, the higher your hourly rate will be. That said, it’s important to note that some social media management companies do pay less than others for certain types of posts. For example, a company that specializes in posting about weddings or events might pay less than an agency that specializes in posting about health and wellness topics.

The best way to find out what kind of hourly rate you should charge is by getting quotes from social media management companies that are already established in your field. Try looking up their website and contacting them directly to ask what they pay their freelancers.

Another option is asking friends who work in this industry how much they charge per hour or day. If all else fails, try calling around to different agencies until someone gives you an answer that seems reasonable based on your skill set level.

Herman Edward

I am a content writer, and I love what I do! Writing makes me feel like the words are flowing through my fingers, and then onto the keyboard, like magic. My experience as a writer has taught me that writing makes me feel good, as well as helps others to feel better too!