Social media is among the most effective marketing methods that businesses and brands have at their disposal however Selecting the best advertising mediums for your business or brand can be challenging since not all the social sites are created alike and not every site will be the best suit for your business/brand needs. Each social media platform has its unique users who interact with the platforms differently. With this in mind, creating content for your social media sites needs to be informed by how the users interact with the content.
Businesses need to be aware of these nuances when deciding which platform to invest in. Some of the things to look at when deciding the best social media platform for your business/brand are:-
- The nature of your business.
Is the nature of your business/brand mainly with other businesses or brands or is it business – consumer? For B2C companies, IG and FB help gain visibility and engage with consumers. Consistency in Visibility greatly increases brand recognition and also encourages consumer engagement. For B2B, LinkedIn helps in zeroing on current and potential clients as well as building on personal connections. Youtube is a great platform to share informative, educative and entertaining content.
- Consumer profile.
Knowing your target audience and where you can find them should be a priority especially for small businesses that are on a budget. Knowing which social media your target audience interacts with the most will prevent the business/brand from shooting in the dark.
Knowing your client demographics is an important aspect to take into account when choosing the social platform that will best work for your business.
Ensure that the platform you choose is where your ideal customer is. For instance, if your core business is B2B then more marketing efforts should be directed to LinkedIn. If your core business deals with e-commerce, then Instagram and Facebook would be your best bet. If your target market is largely comprised of a younger demographic, then Snapchat may be one of the more effective social media sites for business for you!
- Find out which platforms your competitors are on.
Research on your top competitors to find out what kind of content they are putting out, how often they post and how many users are interacting with the content they put out. Once you settle on the social media platform that is getting more traction you can decide to start on that platform for your business/brand.
- Match your content with the platform.
Know which content is suitable for each platform. Instagram makes for great pictorial content, not so much long elaborate messages. Your products or services provide a great road map when it comes to creating the content.
- Identify your business /brand needs and objectives
Choosing a platform to focus on is dependent on understanding your goals for social. What you want to achieve in your business or as a brand can guide you as to which social media platform to engage in. Prioritizing Twitter to enhance customer care may be beneficial to get customer feedback since it is atop a platform for feedback. Businesses or brands in the travel and hospitality industries may consider Instagram to showcase their services or products in visually compelling ways.
When all is said, using the right social media platform can propel your business/brand further whilst allowing your customers to connect and interact with your business / brand on a personal level.
TrioG Communication 