Hiring Your First Digital Native: A Checklist for Founders

If social media is eating your time and you know it should not be, you are probably ready to hire a digital native. But doing it without a clear process is how founders end up managing someone who posts mediocre content for three months before quietly disappearing.

At re:ampd, we hired two Creative Marketing and Social Media Interns - and instead of a standard interview, we asked applicants to create a mock social post and record a 60-second video intro. We learned more from those two things than any CV ever told us. The framework below is built directly from that experience.

PHASE 01 - Before You Hire Anyone

Get clear on what you actually need before you write a single job post. This phase is about auditing your own time, not describing an ideal candidate.

re:ampd tip: Do not hire to fix a problem you have not diagnosed. Write down what is not getting done, then ask: is this a time problem or a skills problem? The answer changes who you need.

Clarify the Role

• List the five tasks eating your time most. Be specific. "Social media" is not a task. "Scheduling four posts per week and responding to DMs" is.
• Identify which tasks require your brain. Anything that does not require your specific input is a candidate for delegation.

Know What "Digital Native" Means for Your Business

• Define which platforms matter to you. Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn - these are different skill sets. Do not assume fluency on one means fluency on all.
• Decide your stance on AI tools. We listed "bonus points for Claude or GPT experience" in our post. AI fluency is becoming increasingly important - be deliberate about it.
• Set a realistic hours-per-week expectation. Fifteen hours per week is a solid start for an intern. Do not hire for ten hours and expect full-time output.
• Write your must-haves vs nice-to-haves. Our must-haves: creative, initiative, own laptop, Canva-confident. Nice-to-have: AI tools. This keeps shortlisting honest.

PHASE 02 - Finding the Right Person

Where to look, and how to write a post that attracts drive - not just availability.

re:ampd tip: We said "this is not a make-the-coffee internship" in our post. That one line filtered out the wrong people before they even applied. Be direct about what the role actually is.

Where to Post

• Post on LinkedIn with the job details. Great for reaching recently graduated candidates who are actively looking. We had all of our team post separately on their own LinkedIn to extend reach.
• Contact university career centres (AUT, Massey, UoA). Free, fast, and reaches students actively looking for real-world experience.
• Seek or TradeMe. Good for a broader reach if the above channels are not surfacing enough candidates.

Write a Post That Attracts the Right People

• Lead with what they will actually do, not the job title. "You will film, edit, post, and pitch ideas."
• Tell them what is in it for them. We offered: work alongside the founder daily, attend events, meet Auckland's top female founders. That is a compelling offer for the right person.
• Be honest about the must-haves upfront. Own laptop. Auckland-based. Right to work in NZ. Put these in. It saves everyone time.

PHASE 03 - The Creative Brief Test

Skip the CV-only process. Give applicants a brief and see what they actually do with it.

re:ampd tip: We asked applicants to (1) design a mock Instagram or TikTok post as if they already worked here, and (2) record a 60-second video telling us who they are and one idea they would bring. We learned more from that than any interview would have told us.

Build Your Brief

• Ask for one piece of real creative work. A mock post, a reel concept, a caption. Something that shows their taste and initiative - not just what they say they can do.
• Ask for a short video intro (60 seconds max). On-camera comfort, communication style, and energy all matter for social media roles. A video tells you instantly.
• Ask for one idea they would bring to the role. This separates people who have done their homework from people who just want any job.

What to Look For When You Review

• Do they understand your brand without being told? Did they look at your Instagram before creating? Does the work feel like it belongs on your page? Initiative and research are green flags.
• Is their idea specific to you, or generic? "You should post more reels" is not an idea. "You could do a founder Q&A series before your events" is. Specificity means they have thought about it.

A note on reviewing their work: try not to assess it too critically against what you are currently posting. A digital native may bring a different creative lens - and that is partly the point. If something feels off-brand but shows real initiative and originality, that is worth a conversation. You can teach your brand, but you cannot teach drive.

PHASE 04 - The Interview

We do our interviews on a call. Keep it conversational - you are not just assessing their answers, you are assessing whether this is someone you actually want to work closely with. Trust that instinct.

Before the Call

• Review their creative brief submission again before you dial in. Come in with one specific thing you want to follow up on from their work. It shows you took it seriously, and it tells you a lot about how they respond to feedback.
• Be upfront about pay and conditions early in the conversation. Do not leave it to the end. If the role is unpaid experience or transitions to paid later, say so clearly and early. It respects their time and yours.

The Questions

Start with the basics:

• Tell me a little about yourself.
• Where are you based?
• What hours and days are you available?

Then move into their experience:

• Can you tell us about your previous work experience?
• What kind of content were you creating and what platforms were you posting on?
• What was the biggest thing you took away from that experience?

Then into how they think and work:

• Can you give us a specific example of a task where AI tools made a real difference to your work?
• How do you make sure the content you produce with AI still feels authentic and on-brand?
• What do you think makes a piece of content - whether video or static - actually perform well?

Then resilience:

• Can you tell us about a time you had to navigate something difficult in a work, school, or team environment? What was the situation, how did you handle it, and what did you take away from it?

Then close it out:

• When are you available to start?
• Do you have any questions for us?

What You Are Really Listening For

• Self-awareness. Can they reflect on their own work honestly - not just tell you what went well?
• Specificity. Strong candidates give real examples with real detail.
• Curiosity. Do they ask good questions at the end? Someone who has done their homework on you will.
• Energy. You will likely be working closely with this person. Does the conversation feel easy?

That matters more than a perfect answer.

PHASE 05 - Setting Them Up to Succeed

Hiring is only half the job. The other half is onboarding them so they can actually deliver.

re:ampd tip: A digital native can move fast - but only if you give them the context. Share your brand voice, your "do not post" rules, and examples of content you love. Do not make them guess what good looks like.

Week One Essentials

• Give them access to the tools they need on day one. Canva, scheduling tools, shared drives, social media accounts. Nothing kills momentum like spending week one waiting for logins.
• Share your brand guidelines or a content guide. Colours, fonts, tone of voice, what you never say. If you do not have this written down, now is a good time to start.
• Show them examples of content you love - and content that does not feel like you. Three posts you would repost. Three that feel off-brand. This calibrates their taste faster than a brief ever will.
• Check in - even 15 minutes. They need feedback to improve. You need visibility.

Ongoing

• Give them a content calendar to work from. We built ours using Claude Cowork and Artifacts. Get in touch if you would like instructions on how to set one up yourself: support@re-ampd.com
• Create a simple approval process before posting. Draft, then your review, then post. Keeps quality high without micromanaging. Adjust oversight as trust builds.
• Tell them what success looks like at 30, 60, and 90 days. "By month two, you are scheduling content independently with minimal edits" is clear. "Be more proactive" is not.

BONUS - Use AI to Write Your Job Post

You do not need to start from a blank page. Copy the prompt below and paste it into your AI of choice. It will ask you a few quick questions and then write your job post for you.

"I need help writing a job post to hire a digital native for my business. Before you write anything, please ask me the following questions one at a time and wait for my answer before moving on. 1. What is your business name and what do you do in one or two sentences? 2. What type of role is this? And how many hours per week? 3. Where is the role based, and is there any flexibility on location or hours? 4. What are the four or five main tasks this person will actually do day to day? 5. What are your must-haves for this person? Think about skills, tools, attitude, and any practical requirements like owning a laptop or being based in a specific city. 6. What is in it for them beyond pay? Think about access, experience, learning, or who they will get to meet. 7. What is one honest line about what kind of workplace or role this is? For example: 'You will work directly alongside the founder every day' or 'This is a small team and you will own real work from week one.' 8. What should applicants send in - including details about a mock-up or 60-second video, and to whom should they send it? Once I have answered all of these, write a job post that is direct, warm, and specific. Lead with what the person will actually do. Make it sound like a real person wrote it, not a corporate HR team."