What do you do if your social media marketing resume lacks temporary and contract work experience?

Breaking into the field of social media marketing can be daunting, especially when your resume doesn't showcase temporary or contract work, which is often seen as valuable experience. You might worry that your lack of diverse, short-term roles could put you at a disadvantage. However, there are strategies you can employ to make your resume stand out and demonstrate your potential to prospective employers, even without a history of contract work. By highlighting your strengths, transferable skills, and any relevant experience, you can craft a compelling narrative that showcases your suitability for a career in social media marketing.

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1 Emphasize Skills

In the absence of temporary or contract work on your social media marketing resume, it's crucial to emphasize the skills you've developed. Highlight your proficiency in content creation, analytics, and platform-specific knowledge. For instance, if you've managed a successful personal blog or a community page, detail the growth and engagement strategies you employed. Showcase your understanding of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and content marketing principles, as these are directly transferable to social media campaigns.

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Ashley Challis

Fractional Marketing Services | Marketing, Strategy & Tech to grow and nurture marketing for business owners ✨
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Emphasis on skills is great but you’ll need to back it up with evidence. Create faux clients with a specific need and create content for this so that is tests your experience.

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2 Leverage Education

If you're new to social media marketing and lack hands-on experience, leverage your educational background. Whether you have a degree in marketing, communications, or even a certification in social media management, highlight the relevant coursework and projects that have prepared you for this field. Discuss any theoretical knowledge you've gained about consumer behavior, branding, or digital marketing strategies, and how you can apply these concepts in a practical setting.

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3 Highlight Projects

Even without formal temporary or contract work, you may have completed projects that showcase your social media marketing skills. Highlight any campaigns or initiatives you've spearheaded, whether as part of volunteer work, internships, or personal projects. Explain the objectives, strategies used, and the outcomes. This demonstrates your ability to plan and execute social media marketing strategies effectively, a key competency for any role in the field.

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4 Network Actively

Networking is a powerful tool for overcoming a lack of temporary or contract work on your resume. Engage with industry professionals on platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter to build relationships and learn from their experiences. Attend virtual webinars and workshops to stay updated on the latest trends and best practices in social media marketing. Through networking, you may also discover opportunities for freelance gigs or collaborations that can add valuable experience to your resume.

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5 Volunteer Strategically

Consider offering your social media marketing services to non-profits, local businesses, or startups that may not have the resources to hire a full-time professional. This volunteer work can be just as valuable as paid temporary or contract roles. It allows you to apply your skills in a real-world context and provides tangible results that you can add to your resume. Make sure to document your achievements and the impact of your work to share with potential employers.

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Ashley Challis

Fractional Marketing Services | Marketing, Strategy & Tech to grow and nurture marketing for business owners ✨
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Ask some friends or local businesses if you can do some work for them for free. Essentially you need the experience and they’re glad of the free work.

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6 Personal Branding

Finally, use personal branding to your advantage. Create a professional online presence that reflects your expertise and passion for social media marketing. Regularly post content that showcases your insights into the industry, engage with other professionals' content, and demonstrate your ability to build and maintain an online following. This personal branding effort can serve as a practical example of your skills and help fill the gap left by the lack of temporary or contract work experience.

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7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Ashley Challis

Fractional Marketing Services | Marketing, Strategy & Tech to grow and nurture marketing for business owners ✨
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Get yourself on People Per Hour, Fiver, or Upwork and find opportunities on there to help bolster your experience. Sometimes doing work for free or very cheap can give you some experience and exposure to help with your portfolio.

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What do you do if your social media marketing resume lacks temporary and contract work experience?

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2

3

4

5

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7

1 Emphasize Skills

2 Leverage Education

3 Highlight Projects

4 Network Actively

5 Volunteer Strategically

6 Personal Branding

7 Here’s what else to consider

Social Media Marketing

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What do you do if your social media marketing resume lacks temporary and contract work experience?

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

1 Emphasize Skills

2 Leverage Education

3 Highlight Projects

4 Network Actively

5 Volunteer Strategically

6 Personal Branding

7 Here’s what else to consider

Social Media Marketing

Rate this article

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