(tl;dr at bottom)

Hello everyone!
:D :D :D :D :D

So here's the deal.

One of my classmates is a game developer who understands the need for an active social media and I was wondering how everyone else felt about hiring a social media specialist?

Honestly, think about it.

Would you want to hire someone who could run your Twitter, make a YouTube video that is focused on the business's brand; evaluates: Facebook Ad, Google AdWords, Google PPC campaign analytics, Tweets updates and contests (once a following is built, averaging 3,000 followers, in which at least a couple of hundred to a thousand should be active), and handles SEO (search engine optimization)? Because as I have heard it and understand, game developers are usually busy writing code out and have sparse time to spend towards anything else. It's the nitty-gritty of creating a game and designing it in your vision, or the vision of your audience/target market. I don't know how you all do it, but I honestly can't wait for augmented reality glasses to be comfortable, fashionable, doesn't overheat, and scaled down to less than $400, and any VR/AR game developer is a deity in my eyes.

But first and foremost, tell me if I'm wrong!!!

I need to validate this assumption that game developers may have a desire to set a monthly contract (or negotiate equity, a royalty fee, free publicity, etc.) with an agency that provides a relatively new skill set that has seen quantifiable results within the industry's KPI's (key performance indicators). If I am wrong in this assumption, and a game developer does not require a specialist handling their social media presence/web presence, tell me why. Can you all do it on your own? If you are doing it on your own, how many conversions have you seen for getting people to view your videos more? Are you analyzing the feedback that your customers are leaving on your posts, status updates, or email?

Please comment your thoughts and I hope to hear from you all soon!

(tl;dr: So how do you feel about social media specialists? Would you hire one? Is there a need to hire one as a game developer?

I need to validate this assumption that game developers may have a desire to set a monthly contract (or negotiate equity, a royalty fee, free publicity, etc.) with an agency that provides a relatively new skill set that has seen quantifiable results within the industry's KPI's (key performance indicators). If I am wrong in this assumption, and a game developer does not require a specialist handling their social media presence/web presence, tell me why. Can you all do it on your own? If you are doing it on your own, how many conversions have you seen for getting people to view your videos more? Are you analyzing the feedback that your customers are leaving on your posts, status updates, or email?

Tom covered the bulk of it.

Your assumption is wrong in the general case.

A typical game studio builds the game, writes the code, draws the pictures, makes the animations, makes the sounds, tests for bugs, and creates a product. That is game development. They do not market the game, do not distribute the game, do not perform technical support for the game beyond perhaps writing one or two patches, and do not handle much of the money except in their relationship with the publisher.

Generally a game publisher markets the game including on social media, leverages distribution contacts to distribute the game, supports the game including on social media, and handles the financial sides with customers and with the game studio and with other entities.

In the typical game development studio there is no need for a social media specialist for the developer. Instead that is part of the roles of the game publisher.

Extremely large companies serve as their own publishers and they may have people that work with social communications. For example, when I was on The Sims the game team -- consisting of hundreds of people spread across four sites and involving multiple contract companies -- had their own social communications team that included a few designers ... however, that is one of the biggest games of all time with over 100 million products sold. But that turns them into both developer and publisher. When I was on Tiger Woods, another enormous game with hundreds of people across several sites and sub-contractors, the company was both developer and publisher.

Extremely small game developers struggle to break from obscurity and typically never become successful. Less than 1% of those that start reach completion, and less than 1% of those completed ever break from obscurity, and less than 1% of those that are widely reviewed become popular beyond a tiny uptick when reviewed. These people generally cannot afford or will not hire a social media specialist because they have no funds. The are their own publisher but they cannot afford the work.

Game publishers absolutely use the position as facets of their marketing and support teams. They have been doing that for over a decade.

Game developers generally do not need it.

Some groups are both publishers and developers, but only the enormous ones can hire for the role.

I've actually come across a variety of my clients which would've appreciated that kind of services.

However, none of them seemed to assume it was a 'job', as much as someone else's 'other' part of the responsibilities to getting the game done, and as such, they weren't willing to commit capital towards hiring, or retaining the services of someone.

Those that did, in general, were the same ones who would offer everyone rev-share and no pay.

So, in theory, there is demand, but on its own, this is not a viable business plan with the current infrastructure.

Tom is definitely on the money there, but just though I'd give you my personal experience as well.