We all know that social media management takes more time than money, in most cases.  Many marketing, communication, and public relations professionals struggle with managing social media platforms while still trying to accomplish other daily tasks.  The big question:  Do we hire an employee to manage social media, or do we hire an agency?

This is a question that will be answered differently by every organization.  You will need to make the best decision based on your circumstances.  But, it doesn’t hurt to know what tasks and projects companies and organizations are outsourcing.

According to a June 2010 study from MarketingSherpa, many organizations plan to outsource more in the coming year.

I’m not a big fan of doing all social media in-house and this isn’t just because we offer these services here at ABC Creative Group.  Digital changes daily.  There is always something happening and always something new to learn.  Most of the time, the employee that is managing the day-to-day tasks and operations doesn’t have the time to learn the new tricks and stay current in the industry.  Most of the time, this person is a team of one.  But, in an agency, there are several people to manage your work, and there are, or should be, people that continually research and stay current on social media best practices.  Contracting with an agency may even be more cost effective for you.

What do you think about this?  Do you prefer to hire someone for social media communications or outsource these tasks/functions to an agency?