My Career: ‘Social media never sleeps...weekends and evenings can be a busy time for me’

Name: Rebecca Doody

Age: 24

Lives: Cork city.

Job title: Social Media Manager and Content Creator; founder of RD Social

Salary bracket: Somewhere between €30,000 and €45,000

Education background: I graduated from University College Cork with a Bachelor of Arts. Although I didn’t study marketing or media, I’ve always been fascinated by creativity and storytelling.

Everything I know about social media has been self-taught – from learning how to make a social media strategy to mastering editing apps. That willingness to dive in and learn as I go has been more valuable than any degree.

Hobbies: Travel is my favourite way to recharge. When I’m not exploring new places, you’ll find me cooking, discovering the new coffee and food spots around Cork, or experimenting with new ideas for my own social media channels.

Describe your job in five words: Creative, innovative, fulfilling, dynamic and ever-evolving.

Describe yourself in five words: Creative, patient, friendly, determined, adventurous.

Personality needed for this kind of work? You need to be self-sufficient and driven, with enough creativity to think outside the box and enough confidence to back your ideas.

Assertiveness helps being a young female business owner, and a calm head is essential when things go wrong.

How long are you doing this job? I officially launched RD Social in April, 2024, so I’m about 18 months in at this point and loving every second.

How did you get this job? During college I worked as a barista. To help the café stand out, I started creating TikTok videos – and I was amazed at how quickly those posts translated into customers coming through the door.

That experience showed me how powerful social media can be for small businesses.

After graduating, I went travelling and realised I wanted a career that wasn’t limited to a few weeks of annual leave per year. I returned home, talked to my network, and saw there was a demand for freelance social media help.

At 22, I founded RD Social, building a business from scratch without a marketing degree or agency background.

By sharing my journey – from teaching myself content strategy to hiring my first team member – I’ve grown a following of over 14,000 people on social media and worked with more than 20 businesses across 13+ industries including finance, healthcare, fashion and other industries in Cork, Ireland, the UK, and the USA.

Do you need particular qualifications or experience? No formal qualifications are necessary. A curious mind, determination to grow and learn, and genuine love of social media platforms matter more than certificates. Practise by creating content for yourself or for friends’ businesses; you’ll quickly discover what works. Skills like video editing, copywriting and analysing metrics can be learned online for free or at low cost.

Describe a day at work: Recently, I spent the morning at the Christmas market at Emmet Place (part of Corkmas) filming content for my client Stan Notte Creations. His Pure Cork range of cards, mugs, caps, art and more celebrates Cork’s unique lingo and culture. Visitors stop by his stall to pick up festive gifts and pick up the perfect Christmas gifts for the Cork lover in their life!

How many hours do you work a week? It varies wildly depending on client shoots and deadlines, but it generally falls between 40 and 50 hours. Social media never sleeps, and weekends or evenings can be busy if a campaign launches or a client has an event.

What do you wear to work? Comfort and style meet somewhere in the middle. If I’m out on a shoot, I’ll wear something practical but camera-ready – jeans, a blazer and boots. When I’m editing at home, it’s usually jeans and a cosy jumper.

Is your industry male or female dominated? The social media space is quite balanced, with many women starting agencies or building influencer careers. I’ve found the community supportive and collaborative; it feels less about gender and more about creativity.

Does this affect you in any particular way? I don’t feel particularly affected by gender dynamics. What matters is the value you provide. Clients care about results – whether their posts are engaging and converting – not whether the person behind the strategy is male or female.

Is your job stressful? How? Rate it on a scale of 1–10: About a 5. Running your own business means juggling multiple clients, deadlines and constant algorithm changes, which can be demanding. There’s no ‘off’ switch – I’ve posted content on Christmas Eve and St Stephen’s Day because social media keeps ticking.

But I genuinely enjoy what I do, and seeing clients succeed makes the long hours worth it.

Do you work with others or on your own? I started on my own but recently hired my first team member. Now we’re a team of two, and of course I collaborate closely with clients and sometimes their in-house marketing teams. Most of my creative work is still self-directed.

When do you plan to retire or give up working? I don’t see myself walking away any time soon. RD Social is still growing, and I love the freedom and creativity this work gives me. My goal is to build a sustainable business that allows me to work from anywhere and eventually scale up and keep helping businesses grow.

Best bits – Working with clients like Stan Notte Creations is particularly rewarding – there’s nothing like seeing people queue at a Christmas market to buy a Pure Cork mug because of a social media video we shot earlier that week.

The Corkmas Christmas market at Emmet Place runs until December 22, with wooden chalets filled with artisan producers and local makers, and it’s the perfect place for people to pick up their Cork-themed Christmas gifts.

Worst bits: Social media is 24/7, so switching off is hard. I’ve posted content on Christmas Eve and St Stephen’s Day for multiple clients. Keeping up with every platform’s constant changes can be exhausting. Because everything is public, you need thick skin when campaigns don’t work out.

Advice to those who want your job? Immerse yourself in it. Follow creators you admire, read about algorithms, experiment with your own posts, and study what performs well.

You don’t need a degree or big budget – you need determination, creativity, and self-sufficiency.

If you don’t know how to do something, teach yourself. Start with small steps, be consistent and your skills and clients will grow.

Any other comments? Building RD Social from scratch has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I’ve met incredible people and helped businesses reach new audiences.

If you’re thinking of turning your passion into a career, take the leap. The hardest part is starting – after that, you adapt, learn and become a new version of yourself you didn’t know was within you.

• See Corkmas.ie for details on this year’s Christmas market at Emmet Place.