Despite popular belief, you don’t need to be on all social media platforms to promote your business. By just picking the platforms that work for your company and utilising all of the features they have to offer you could be making a bigger difference with just one that you could be with 6. But, how do you choose the right social media platform for you?
What to consider:
When deciding which platform is worth investing your time in, there are a few things to consider – your target demographic, the style and ability of the platform and ultimately, what you want to achieve.
Below I’ve put together a list of the key purposes/demographics for the 5 most popular social media platforms – Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and Instagram. Take a look and see which is most suitable for your business:
Facebook for businesses:
Facebook is one of the most popular and powerful social networks out there. It has over 1.28 billion monthly active users and almost every business is active and for a good reason.
Due to its large number of users, the likelihood of your target audience being online is quite high. The platform has fantastic targeting for both paid and organic content and you can almost completely control the way you want it to look – from the cover photo and profile picture to the about options, app integrations and featured images.
Almost any business can benefit from having a Facebook page. But Facebook isn’t primarily about selling. Facebook is ideal for giving your business a personality. Content works best when you portray your business in a friendly, sociable way. It’s the perfect place to show off what your team members have been up too as well as showcasing your products.
Twitter for businesses:
Twitter has become widely popular over the last decade and is known amongst businesses for being the place of conversation. Unlike other social media platforms, Twitter is very ‘in the moment’.
Twitter is the platform for you if you want to reach out to people now and expect -and are ready for people to reply. If you have breaking news, updates, questions for your followers or just want to see what your customers are interested in, choose Twitter.
LinkedIn for businesses:
LinkedIn is a B2B social media platform. Just imagine attending your busiest networking event from the comfort of your own office. LinkedIn is predominantly a platform that allows you make connections in the business world and utilise them as necessary.
It’s a fantastic platform for recruiters and any professional services. LinkedIn has good targeting options and allows you the make the most of people’s skills. It’s common to ask business related questions and recommend others from your professional network.
Service providers are more common on LinkedIn in comparison to manufacturers or retailers, because it’s easier to talk about what your business does, and it’s not a very visual medium.
Instagram for businesses:
If your business is B2C and very visual, Instagram is the platform you need to be on. Shops, travel agents, estate agents, designers and more are all on Instagram because they offer a ‘pretty’ product that people will take an interest in.
Instagram has great integration with Facebook when it comes to advertising and due to its use of hashtags, posts are easier to find and target your customers.
You can drive traffic through to your websites/product pages, show support for other causes (e.g. comic relief) and also show your company’s personality.
YouTube for businesses:
We’ve all heard of YouTube, right? It’s the go to place for reviews, how to’s and entertainment. Almost any business type can benefit from YouTube but it requires a lot of time and skill to build a following and to create engaging conversation.
As with all platforms, YouTube can work better for certain industries including retail, health and more. It’s also a fantastic platform for influencer marketing.
Advice about social media platforms for businesses
For marketing advice specific to your business, get in touch and speak with a marketing specialist on 01858 374 170 or email info@idealmarketingcompany.com
