The UK Government has begun the search for a new ‘Executive Director of Digital’ to manage its presence online. The job is being referred to by some media outlets as a ‘Twitter Tsar’ due to the high level of focus on social networking. The salary will be around £142,000 which is just £500 less than the Prime Minister.
Whilst managing the government’s Twitter will form a part of the role, it will not be the main aspect. “Twitter will be a tiny part of the job. To call this role a Twitter Tsar is like calling Richard Branson a flight steward,” said a Cabinet Office official in a statement to The Telegraph.
The position previously belonged to Andrew Stott for a salary of £160,000. However, according to the Government the new position will be more complicated due to the growing importance placed on internet marketing and digital communications.
Social networking has quickly become one of the most important tools in corporate marketing campaigns. It is essential when promoting a new product or even the business itself to new customers. Online advertising has even reached the point where Google has the highest ad revenue of any company within the UK, bringing in more income from advertisements than ITV.
Alix Halliday, the founder and chief executive of Social Go commented: “Every business needs someone to own its digital output. Otherwise digital remains an afterthought, with no one tying together a company’s strategy in this important area. There has to be someone committed to putting out a consistent message in this space.”
