If your business has limited capital and manpower, social media can provide a cost-effective means for getting your message out to promote your brand with the right audience.
New social media channels are popping up every day and established platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn offer great opportunities to get your message in front of literally millions of prospects. But how do you choose the best platform to deliver your message to users most likely to make a purchase? It starts with knowledge and research!
Here are a few of the best social media channels that can give you a platform for marketing your business!
- LinkedIn for B2B / Business People – Without a doubt, LinkedIn is the #1 place for business people to connect and grow their network of business contacts. Don’t think you need a professional LinkedIn profile yourself? Think again: 49% of B2B buyers now look at the seller’s LinkedIn profile as part of their buying process! Need help with your profile? Check out selltowin’s new on demand LinkedIn to Win course on sale for $99 in their eCademy.
- Facebook for B2C – Despite the recent security breach headlines surrounding Facebook, we still see this channel as a dominant B2C marketing channel. It’s hard to argue with a social platform that has such reach and adoption across such a wide range of users. Men and women between the ages of 25-54 make up 32% and 29% of Facebook users respectively. While originally a platform designed for younger users, today only 9% of users are between 18 – 24, so if your target market is younger, it might not be the best platform for your business. However, if your customers are older, 44% of users check in multiple times each day!
- Pinterest for Women – If your business targets women, 42% of women online are Pinterest users. If you sell products or services geared toward women who like fashion, art, home décor or anything visual, Pinterest is a great platform to share and connect!
- Snapchat for Millennials and Gen Z – 60% of users are under 24 so if you market to millennials or the up-and-coming Generation Zs, Snapchat is a great channel. This audience loves short bite size pieces of content such as quick videos, behind the scenes footage, new products or interviews with thought leaders to capitalize on this very visual platform!
- Instagram for Visual People – While a recent change in Instagram’s algorithm has made it more difficult to drive traffic, it can be a great channel to use as a brand building tool. If you post stunning images or thought-provoking videos and have a decent following you can build your brand; but as a general marketing tool you may do better elsewhere.
It does take time to research and monitor the constantly changing social media landscape, but it’s time well spent. Do your research! It’s best to focus on two or three primary channels rather than trying to tackle them all. Pay attention to new channels that come online. Often, early adopters can reap the greatest benefits!
Need help building your online presence? Not sure where to start? Why not contact us at In2communications for our social media tune-up and we’ll show you ways to amplify your content, your website, your message and your brand!
