On the surface, social media can seem easy. But once you start creating strategies, keeping up with industry trends, drafting posts and monitoring engagement — it can quickly become a huge project. Make sure that you’re making the most of your social media efforts by focusing on the right platforms for your business. Keep reading to find out which platforms work best for you.
Why You Need to be on Social Media
Social media is an essential part of your digital marketing strategy. With billions of active users each month, social media is the most cost-effective way to reach your audience. To save your time and money (and sanity), you want to make sure you focus your social media efforts on the platforms where your specific audience is most active.
Arguably the most popular social media platform, Facebook offers an extremely diverse audience. With around 2.89 billion active monthly users, it’s pretty much expected that your business has a Facebook page.
Facebook Business pages are a great tool to share important information about your business. You can focus on everything from business hours and contact information to product catalogs and service information. If you’re using it correctly, it should function as a way for your business to talk with your customers, not just talk at them.
Instagram proved in 2021 that it isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. With over 1.22 billion active users, Instagram remains one of the most popular social media platforms.
Since Instagram highlights photos and videos, this platform is best for businesses that have compelling visuals to share (ie. no stock photography here!). We’ve found that it works best for restaurants, retail stores or really any business that has a tangible product to sell!
Instagram is also making it easier to link to your website from their platform with the introduction of link stickers. This means that Instagram can be a great tool to drive website traffic and sales for your small business!
While Twitter can be a great tool for some businesses, it’s not for everyone. It’s a powerful platform for brands that have a strong voice. Ever checked out Wendy’s account? They’re winning the game. For those of us who don’t want to roast our audiences, it’s a great way to share blog links, quick updates, polls and more.
If that doesn’t fit your social media strategy, you may want to pass on this one. For a successful Twitter strategy, you need a lot of time. Optimal engagement requires posting up to 5 times a day! That being said, it can be a useful tool for both customer service and SEO efforts. So it’s really important to weigh the benefits against the time it’ll take to do it right.
Does your business focus on B2B or talking to professionals? Then LinkedIn may be the platform for you!
You should definitely be on LinkedIn if you’re looking to recruit high-quality applicants, establish yourself as an industry expert or sell to other businesses. You’ll see the most return on this platform if you share a mixture of original content (like blogs and job listings) and shared content (like articles from other industry experts).
Others
Now that we’ve covered the social media powerhouses, we can focus on the lesser-known platforms.
YouTube: As the second most used social media platform, YouTube is essential for businesses that have the capacity to produce quality video content. Just make sure your content is creative, engaging and/or educational.
Pinterest: As another visual platform, Pinterest allows your audience to “pin” your content to their curated boards. This is a great way for unique businesses to showcase their products. But it’s definitely not for every business. Some industries that do well: food, fashion, beauty, exercise and photography.
TikTok: The best for last? We may have said “lesser-used platforms” earlier, but TikTok doesn’t necessarily fall into that category. Over the past few years, TikTok has exploded. This is a great place to reach younger audiences. But make sure your business can translate to the world of TikTok before you dive in. TikTok users don’t want ads, they want entertainment.
What Now?
Now that you know the ins and outs of social media platforms, it’s time to focus your attention on the platforms that will do the most for your small business. Need some help? Reach out today to find out how we can help you coordinate your social media strategy for maximum impact.
