- What it costs
- Your own social media manager: A wage plus payroll taxes. Part time at the national median for the closest job the government tracks, about $3,100 a month before taxes.
- A jewelry marketing agency (us): Studio: $1,000 a month. On-Location: $2,400 a month. Flat.
- Who takes the photos and video
- Your own social media manager: They do, with whatever camera and lights they have, on top of everything else.
- A jewelry marketing agency (us): We do. On-Location is a shoot day in your store each month with lights and a macro lens. Studio is built from your product photos.
- Who writes the posts
- Your own social media manager: They do.
- A jewelry marketing agency (us): We do, in your store's voice.
- Knows jewelry
- Your own social media manager: Depends on who you hire. You may be teaching them what a bezel setting is.
- A jewelry marketing agency (us): Jewelry stores are all we do: diamonds, settings, metals, birthstones, bridal.
- Answers comments and messages
- Your own social media manager: Yes, if you make it part of the job.
- A jewelry marketing agency (us): No. We post; you answer your own comments and messages.
- Platforms
- Your own social media manager: Any you want.
- A jewelry marketing agency (us): Facebook only.
- Your time
- Your own social media manager: Hiring, training, checking their work, and covering when they are out.
- A jewelry marketing agency (us): Studio: send up to 12 product links a month. On-Location: host one shoot day.
- When it ends
- Your own social media manager: You hire and train someone new. Make sure the store owns every login.
- A jewelry marketing agency (us): Cancel any month. Your brand kit and every posted piece stay with your store.
- Contract
- Your own social media manager: Employment, with everything that comes with it.
- A jewelry marketing agency (us): None. Month to month.
Holiday Special: sign by November 30 and keep $1,500 a month through December 2027. Same package, still no contract.
The government does not track "social media manager" as a job of its own. The closest one it does track is public relations specialist, and part of that job is watching and answering social media. The national median pay was $35.94 an hour in May 2025 [Measured: US Bureau of Labor Statistics].
At 20 hours a week, that works out to about $3,100 a month before payroll taxes. Pay in a small town is often lower than the national median, and a student costs less again, though then you are the one training them.
What you are really hiring for
Posting is the easy part. The hard part is photos and video good enough to sell a piece of fine jewelry: sharp, true to color, with light that shows off the stone. One person has to be the photographer, the video editor, the writer and the scheduler, and keep it up every week.
That is the question to ask in an interview. Not "can you run our Facebook," but "show me photos you took of something small and shiny."
- You want Instagram, TikTok and Facebook covered, not just Facebook.
- You want someone answering comments and messages through the day.
- Someone on your staff is already good with a camera and has the hours. Paying them for it may be the best deal of all.
- You want someone who can post something happening in the store that afternoon.
When an agency is the better choice
- You do not want to manage another employee.
- You want professional photos and video of your pieces every month.
- You want a set price that does not change when someone is out sick.
- You want the posts to keep going when a person leaves.
You can do both
Some stores have someone on staff answer comments and post the odd photo from the counter, while we make and schedule the month's posts. That split works well, because answering comments is the one thing we leave to you.
See what a month includes: Studio or On-Location.
- How much does a social media manager cost for a small business?
- The closest job the government tracks, public relations specialist, had a national median pay of $35.94 an hour in May 2025. Part time at 20 hours a week, that is about $3,100 a month before payroll taxes. Small-town pay is often lower.
- Is hiring a social media manager worth it for a jewelry store?
- It is if the person can photograph and film jewelry well and you have time to manage them. Posting is the easy part; photos and video that sell fine jewelry are the hard part.
- Can I have a staff member and an agency at the same time?
- Yes. A staff member can answer comments and messages and post in-the-moment photos while the agency makes and schedules the month of posts.
- What happens if I stop working with My Jewelry Marketing?
- There is no contract, so you can cancel any month. Your paid month runs in full, scheduled posts still go out, and your brand kit and every posted piece stay with your store.
