By Kalani Kumarasinghe

Social media; it’s become an omnipresent part of our lives. It has not only changed the way humans communicate but also changed the way business is conducted around the world, making way for reinvention and creativity like never before. That is also why it's becoming increasingly important to get it right.

Daily Mirror spoke to Colombo based Social Media Manager Thilanka Rathnayake, on the highs, lows and challenges of carving out a relatively new career path in Sri Lanka, Social Media Management. Thilanka, the Founder and Managing Director of Devotion Social Media Agency, is a Social Media Consultant as well as a Political Analyst.
 

His team handles several high profile brands and individuals including some well known politicians and cricketers including Wanindu Hasaranga, Kusal Mendis, Ajantha Mendis, Chamika Karunaratne, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Avishka Fernando, Lahiru Kumara and many more. Educated at Royal College, Colombo, Thilanka pursued higher education in the Hospitality sector. He also pursued interests in photography and later social media marketing, which he shares led him to an entirely new venture. 

What does your work typically involve?

Devotion Social Media Agency is a full-service digital agency with expertise and experience, offering our clients a seamless, efficient and well-managed process from start to finish. My clients’ needs are always front and center. From big creative ideas and beautifully designed websites, logos, social media platforms, social media handling to other digital marketing strategies, we deliver everything in-house.

It’s not a one-person job. Me and my team are driven to grow our client’s business and deliver their goals. We are devoted to creating meaningful connections between them and their audiences. This means we work collaboratively, taking the time to genuinely listen and then distill complex goals and ambitions into clear, transparent actions that generate results.

So far, I have worked with a wide range of customers in all industries and markets. This diversity brings new perspectives and insights and provides our customers with new and unexpected ways to compete. I have also associated with a varied range of public figures across industries and markets in social media verification. Not just a number of icons in Sri Lanka but also icons worldwide.

Through my agency I have verified Sri Dalada Maligawa, Mayantha Dissanayake, Harin Fernando, Dhammika Prasad, Yureni Noshika, Tehan Perera, Teena Shenell, Thisara Perera, Lahiru Thirimanne, Pawan Suyal, Beauden Barret, etc. I have also been instrumental in recovering high profile hacked accounts.

Do you think social media related jobs are still unrecognized inotn Sri Lanka?

Social media is essential for modern day businesses. But for a business owner time is sparse and their efforts to utilize social media can often be spread out too thin. When balancing countless other things, adding social media to the mix can be pretty daunting or almost impossible to sustain. 
 

This is why the importance of a Social Media Manager becomes much more significant. When you have a dedicated and committed Social Media Manager to manage all your social media marketing activities, it not only allows employers to direct their attention to general management and other important tasks, but also makes way for a strong focus on a vital component to any succeeding business.

Having said that, Social media jobs are, however, still unrecognized in Sri Lanka. Because most people are still under the impression that just having a presence on social media platforms and posting content is ‘social media marketing’. I feel most people also don’t know the value of a proper social media consultant or manager.

Why do you say this?

Pretty soon, social media will be the main marketing and interacting platform rather than the traditional television and print channels. In Sri Lanka, there’s only a few social media learning opportunities available, when compared to the global scene. But I’m happy to see a few private institutes offering these opportunities and awarding them with certifications. This is very much required in Sri Lanka.

How were you introduced to this career? Who was your first client?

The very first account that I handled was of the band Daddy. I managed their Facebook and Instagram pages. In 2015 actress Yurenii Noshika introduced me the “Chika” from the band. We got to know each other well and I helped them to publish their event albums back then. I started doing their promotions, event campaigns and started building the band’s presence online. I then started to manage Singer Lahiru Perera’s and Yureni’s social media platforms as well, and that’s how it all started.

You handle a number of local celebrity accounts. How do you formulate brand strategies for each of these individuals and entities?

Brand consistency across all marketing touchpoints is a challenge for every company and brand. Social media branding is more than maintaining just a Facebook page, Instagram account or a Twitter account. A brand is how you make your customers feel, and it’s built by taking a consistent approach across every interaction they have with your brand through social media.

What we need to be mindful of is that competitors, too, strengthen their online profiles. So the need for you to differentiate your brand’s identity on social media only keeps growing. Building a recognizable brand known for its positive qualities will help gain and retain followers. Successfully executing branding strategies can help win a loyal following for your brand, too. But developing this powerful, branded social media presence is not a challenge you can just achieve in a day. It takes meticulous planning and consistent efforts.

In my book, social media strategy outlines your social media goals, the tactics you will use to achieve them and the metrics you will track to measure your progress. The goals should align with your business’s larger digital marketing strategy. 
 

So I choose social media marketing goals that align with business objectives. Me and my team are constantly learning everything we can about our client’s audiences. So as you can imagine, the work doesn’t just pause or stop. We also gather data, conduct competitive analysis to listen to what each audience has to say, when it comes to formulating strategies.

This is certainly not a nine to five job. Do you enjoy following a non-conventional path? Do you find the job demanding or stressful?

Managing and handling social media platforms is really not an easy task, even though it may seem that way on the surface level. Sometimes it’s about meeting several clients repeatedly to touch base.

In just the last decade, social media has rapidly evolved and become a major element of marketing in all industries. As a result, social media practitioners now play a role in more business initiatives than ever. We are key players in managing a company’s or individual's reputation, deploying customer service, acquiring customers, spotting trends and navigating breaking news. It’s a common misconception that social media jobs are glamorous and as simple as posting entertaining.
 

But I have to note that working with cricketers is the easiest. We have to get confirmation from them or their managers before posting any content, which gives us some definition and clarity to our role. Some of them are my school friends. I have played cricket with Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickckrama and even Dasun Shanka when I was schooling. So working with them is naturally easy for me.

Managing politicians on the other hand is very hard, we always have to be careful and consider not just thoughts, but also optics and perceptions. So we always have to be in touch with their aides constantly.

What advice would you give anyone who wants to follow a similar path as you?

Social media has opened up so many new opportunities, creating new marketing and media jobs and providing new avenues for professional development. If you do choose to work in this field, you will likely find yourself managing social media accounts across multiple platforms, planning publicity campaigns and along with that comes a serious workload and level of responsibility, that might seem daunting. So perseverance will be your friend.

As social media evolves, so do professional standards, technical certifications, and licensing requirements. If you're new to this area, it might be difficult to find out what the job really consists of or what will be expected of you. You can begin your job hunt by looking for keywords like digital content, digital media, online content, online community, social marketing, engagement, interactive, and just online or social media in general.