To continue our ‘Social Media Marketing is the Real Deal’ series, we’ll now focus on Social Media sites and which ones are most suitable for your business.
Over the last few years, Facebook has dominated the social scene with the most number of users. For the first quarter of 2017 alone, according to Statista, it had 1.94 billion monthly active users… and the numbers continue to grow day by day! So it’s safe to think that most of your customers are on it. However, due to the fact that other Social Media sites, like Instagram and Twitter, also have unique and useful features, it’s very advisable to have an account on other sites as well.
But which of these platforms will give you the most reach, leads, engagement and exposure that your business needs? Which of them should you use
We’re sharing this infographic to help you make up your mind:
You don’t need to have an account on all Social Media sites. Just pick the best ones that are most suitable and would be most useful to your business.
Facebook
A perfect way to reach existing and potential customers online being the most used Social Media channel with 1.94 billion monthly active users worldwide.
You can have a dedicated Business Page with different features that can help in branding and marketing. Some useful features are Call-to-Action buttons, Reviews section and post scheduling.
You can set your paid advertisements to be shown only to your exact target market. Without having to spend too much, your ads are being delivered to the right people at the right time.
Well-suited for: ALL TYPES OF BUSINESSES!
Twitter
Twitter is an effective way to engage and react. Publicly acknowledge your followers by retweeting their posts. You don’t always have to sell. With its 140-character limit, you can share a variety of content like quick updates and tips, instant promos and links to your blogs.
Twitter Ads let you promote your products and promise to help you get more conversions. You can create an ad campaign that focuses on your preferred objective (Target potential customers or Amplify word-of-mouth or Pay-per-click/Pay-per-download.)
Take advantage of #hashtags. In Twitter, trending starts with a cool and unique hashtag. Make it your own by adding your company name or tagline. Have a regular hashtag that you often use along with your posts. Make it relevant and easy to remember.
Well-suited for: Businesses that need to give quick and constant updates to their followers, like News/TV Channels, Celebrities, Educational Institutions, Telecoms, Government agencies, etc.
Instagram
Its main feature is being able to easily share your personality and connect with people through visual content. For businesses, the more stunning, interesting and relevant the images are, the higher the level of engagement you’ll have with your audience. The quality of images being shared and the frequency of posts are very important factors in using this platform.
Take advantage of Instagram Stories – a new feature that lets users share photos and videos in one slideshow. Stories only stay on the site for 24 hours so no need to heavily edit or spend a lot of time creating one. Stories appear at the top of Instagram News Feeds so it’s easily seen by your followers. Use this for company highlights, behind-the-scenes and more.
If you’ll be using Instagram for your business, it’s very advisable to use Facebook as well and link the two platforms together. One major reason is integrated advertisement. You can set up a Facebook ad, integrate it with your Instagram account and post that ad on both accounts with the same audience preference and using the same budget set.
Well-suited for: Businesses that attract customers through visuals, like Photographers, Restaurants, Retail (Clothing, Makeup, Automotive, Arts and Crafts. etc.).
LinkedIn
Being a portal where professionals manage their work profiles and interact with the professional world, LinkedIn is very beneficial for businesses. It now has a feature in which you can link your professional profile to your company page, enabling you to switch from your individual account to your company profile with just a few clicks. This lets you easily manage your business’ overall presence in LinkedIn.
LinkedIn is an effective way not just to promote your business but to also gain insights and knowledge from people with the same industry as you by joining groups. It lets you share helpful information and relevant updates to your connections. It also allows you to see how your competitors are doing. It also lets you post job openings and instantly connect with applicants, making the recruitment process a lot easier.
Utilise the Recommendations feature to receive comments from your connections who recognise and commend your business. The best recommendations come from people who value your work, products and services like co-workers, former colleagues, customers and clients. Recommendations can get a long way in establishing a solid reputation as a trusted organisation in your industry.
Well-suited for: Recruitment Firms, Bloggers, Outsourcing Services, Trainers and Educators, Hotels, Information Technology (Computer Parts, Networking Services and Apps), Engineering, etc.
YouTube
This is a place online where everyone, including your customers, go to watch videos. Through YouTube, you can reach a wider audience, show the personality of your brand through well-prepared videos and grow your business along the way. People often use the search field to research about products/ services or just to have fun. So make your videos interesting as soon as the first seconds play, inject humor sometimes, and make it relatable.
It’s better to create an official YouTube Business Account so your Channel is connected to it. A YouTube Channel is where you can collect all your videos. It’s free and you can customise it to suit your brand. You can upload a profile and cover photo, add in channel description and userful links. Aside from your Channel, your YouTube account also lets you manage all your videos, scan what’s going on in your page, start a live streaming, create video playlists, view your searched and liked and more.
If you have extra budget for ads, you can take advantage of YouTube Advertising. Ads appear before other videos on YouTube starts. So even if users don’t look for your brand specifically, you can still reach them. Other video ads appear beside playing videos and in search results. Also, you have complete control over your budget and target audience. Plus, you can monitor your ad based on how many clicks it got, how many views you paid for and where your ad is viewed.
Well-suited for: Recruitment Firms, Bloggers, Outsourcing Services, Trainers and Educators, Hotels, Information Technology (Computer Parts, Networking Services and Apps), Engineering, etc.
Ready to Kick-Start Social Media for your Business? Let’s get it on! Talk to us! +63 2 7957 7488 or at contact@bureauserv.com.