The best way to use social media marketing, is to first, understand what exactly it is and how it can benefit you and your business. What exactly is social media marketing? This type of marketing is the use of social media accounts to market and promote your brand, company, product, and/or service. What’s the best part about social media marketing? Social media platforms are completely free to use to set up and build your brand.
With social media marketing, you can also use the platforms to run paid ads. These paid ads will help you reach a larger audience and gain a greater following. The most common social media platforms that are used for social media marketing are Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter.
Not only is it important to understand what exactly social media marketing is; but it is also important to understand the pros and cons of each platform. Understanding the pros and cons of each platform will help you and your business decide which platform(s) are best for you. Each platform has its own pros and cons. Not sure where to begin? Check out a breakdown below of the most common social media marketing platforms and a few of the pros/ cons to each.
Instagram is a social media app that allows you to share 1-10 photos at a time, Videos posted in your Instagram Stories can only be 15 seconds in length. Instagram livestream videos can be up to 60 minutes long. User videos posted to IGTV have to be between 15 seconds and 10 minutes long. Verified accounts and accounts with a large following can post up to 60 minutes of video on IGTV. Instagram stories are on your Instagram account for 24 hours, but you can also save them onto your profile under a “highlight” section where these stories can live permanently.
Pros of using Instagram
You can reach a large audience organically through posting content and engagement. It’s easy to share multiple photos at once and videos that captivate your target audience.
It’s easy to collaborate with other brands and team up with influencers. This strategy allows you to broaden your reach and gain more exposure.
Cons of using Instagram
You have to have 10k followers to swipe up and attach links on Instagram Stories.
The organic reach of Instagram isn’t the same as it was 5 years ago but it’s still better organically than Facebook.
Facebook is a social media where you can post videos, photos, update a status, sell on, and you can use it as a messaging tool. Facebook is a way to connect with others around the world, and update friends and family, near and far, with your life. Facebook has also become a social network that has linked its accounts to multiple platforms including: Instagram, Pinterest, and even E-Commerce sites. What that means is Facebook allows you to single-sign on with them when you go to other accounts and sites.
Pros of using Facebook
Facebook is free to use unless you’re running paid ads. You do multiple things at once from posting business updates to receiving positive reviews from customers.
You can provide instant replies to comments/direct messages/reviews and customer support. With Facebook Business Suite, you can do other things like manage posts and schedule videos.
Cons of using Facebook
Facebook’s user base is aging at a rapidly growing rate which is bad news if you’re trying to connect with more Gen Z users.
The organic reach is steadily declining on Facebook. It’s harder to get in front of your target audience without ad spend.
Twitter is an online social messaging tool where you can communicate in short messages called tweets, the max being 280 characters. On Twitter, you can post tweets, send direct messages, interact with other users, and get updated news information instantly because it is so news-based. Twitter is a social network where you can follow other users, topics you are interested in, and companies where you can stay up to date and follow along.
Pros of using Twitter
Twitter is a great way to track up-to-date information since people can quickly share data and news updates on the spot. News can be filtered and organized through the use of hashtags.
Twitter makes it easy to connect and engage with people who share similar interests. You can do this by mentioning other accounts, sending direct messages, retweeting, and replying to tweets from other profiles.
Cons of using Twitter
The lifespan of tweet isn’t very long and can quickly get buried by the frequency of tweets from other accounts.
Twitter has yet to capitalize on other features that have works for other social media apps.
TikTok
What is TikTok? TikTok is a video sharing focused social media network. On Tiktok, users can post or just simply watch short videos. On the platform, users can search up videos that directly correlate with what they are looking for. Whether it is comedy, recipe ideas, or dancing. Users of TikTok have a main page called “For You Page,” where they can scroll through and see content that attracts them. TikTok will see what videos you share with friends, scroll past quickly, save, like, or videos similar to ones you have viewed before and this will make up your “for you page,” also known as “FYP.”
Pros of using TikTok
When compared to other social media platforms like Facebook, TikTok’s organic reach is incredible. You can quickly get discovered by new customers and clients if your content resonates with them.
TikTok’s algorithm is one of the best at figuring out a user’s interests so they’re spending more time watching video content they care about. You can share short form content to easily test what works to get in front of users who are interested in the services you provide.
Cons of using TikTok
Now that TikTok has made it possible to share 3 minute long videos, it can be tougher to rack up views than before. Capturing attention and keeping it is more difficult so you need to do a better job of planning out your content to make sure people care about what you have to say.
It can be tricky niching down and narrowing your focus since there are so many users on the app. You’ll need to spend more time doing outreach engagement. This means you’re not just posting videos but you’re also commenting on videos from potential collaborators and customers.
Deciding which social media platform(s) to market your business
Now that you’ve learned a little more about some of the top social media platforms available for you to use, it’s time to figure out where to put your focus. Your social platform(s) of choice comes down to the following factors:
Age
Education
Income
How your customer/client consumes information
Younger customers and clients tend to be more active on newer social networks like TikTok. Older customers often spend more time on Facebook than Twitter. Knowing the education and income of your target audience because most Pinterest users are more educated and make more money than the average Facebook user. You also need to know media consumption behaviors and preferences like whether or not your ideal customer likes watching 60-second videos or reading memes.
Do you still have questions about which social platform is right for you? Do you need help with developing a meaningful social strategy? Let us know by filling out the contact form below!