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    Social Media Analyst vs Social Media Strategist: what is the difference?

    Social Media Analyst and Social Media Strategist sit at the same seniority band (Senior Level). The difference is scope, not rank: Social Media Analyst owns social listening and monitoring, while Social Media Strategist owns developing comprehensive social media strategies.

    Social Media Analyst

    Senior Level

    The Social Media Analyst specialises in data collection, measurement, and insight generation. This role translates raw social media data into actionable recommendations for strategy and creative teams.

    Experience
    2-5 years
    Reports to
    Social Media Director or Insight Manager
    Owns
    • Social listening and monitoring
    • Performance reporting and dashboard management
    • Competitor and sentiment analysis
    • Trend identification and insight generation
    • Attribution modelling and ROI analysis
    Core skills
    Social listening toolsExcel / SheetsData visualisationSentiment analysisPlatform analyticsStorytelling with data

    Social Media Strategist

    Senior Level

    The Social Media Strategist is a senior specialist role focused primarily on strategy development and audience insight, rather than day-to-day execution. Strategists design the frameworks, channel plans, and measurement approaches that others execute against.

    Experience
    4-8 years
    Reports to
    Director or Head of Marketing
    Owns
    • Developing comprehensive social media strategies
    • Audience research and persona development
    • Competitive benchmarking and landscape analysis
    • Channel selection and investment recommendation
    • Measurement framework design
    Core skills
    Strategic thinkingAudience researchData analysisCompetitive intelligencePresentation skillsBusiness acumen

    Which title should the job ad use?

    • Use Social Media Analyst when the work centres on social listening and monitoring and the hire will report to Social Media Director or Insight Manager.
    • Use Social Media Strategist when the work centres on developing comprehensive social media strategies and the hire will report to Director or Head of Marketing.
    • If the remit covers both, split the role or advertise at the more senior band and pay accordingly. Benchmarks are in the Salary Report.

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