What social media platform is best for my business
Do you experience fear of missing out when you hear of a new social media platform? If you do, ask yourself another question: is it fear of yourself missing out, or fear of missing out on potential new business?
If the latter, we are here to tell you not to worry. The best social media platform for your business doesn’t have to be the newest one. Instead, focus on the one your ideal clients and customers use most frequently. This will vary depending on your industry, so we’ve put together a handy guide to who uses what to help you find your online niche.
(By the way, it helps if you know who your ideal customers are before you start. If you haven’t considered this yet, check out our blog: How to identify your ideal client & market your business to them – Get Ahead VA)
Facebook is a tried-and-tested social media platform, and still the most widely-used. A variety of media work well on it, from long content and videos to soundbites and memes. Done right, it has something to offer to nearly every business and continues to be the most popular social media platform among Get Ahead’s clients.
The biggest group of Facebook users are aged between twenty-four and thirty-four. However, Facebook – along with Instagram – is also the most popular platform with baby boomers. But it’s also good to know that while older Facebook users are fewer in numbers, those that do use it are very active, clicking through to websites over 50% more frequently than their younger counterparts.
What this does mean is that if your target market falls into either of those age categories, it’s worth using Facebook to communicate with them.
LinkedIn is the B2B platform. It’s great for business insights and building a community of like-minded individuals. Get Ahead has seen a lot of success on LinkedIn and because of that, it’s a platform we prioritise.
However, it’s not for everyone. While B2C businesses can do well on LinkedIn, successful posts are usually about improving your practices and growing your business. Consider your content carefully – what works on Facebook might not work on LinkedIn.
The second most popular platform after Facebook, Instagram is great for building your brand, sharing visual content and getting all creative! How well it works for you depends on how visually appealing you can make your brand.
It’s worth noting that even businesses that don’t lend themselves to pictures can have a lot of success on Instagram. Informative reels and on-brand memes are a great way of connecting with your customer base, and tagging others is always an effective way of increasing your reach.
Quality of interactions tends to trump quantity on Twitter. Fewer people use it, but those that do are quite passionate about it. It’s the opinion platform, with tweets from public figures frequently shared on the news. It can be a great place to build a community, with lists and hashtags there to help you filter your feed and connect with people who want to hear from you. Regular “hours” and “chats” are great online networks where you can make some high quality connections.
Twitter’s character limit means that you can’t waffle on, but it’s a good place to share links to your blogs and web pages.
So, which social media platform is best for my business?
The best platform for your business is the one where your customers are. Once you’ve found that, focus on creating the right content for that platform.
This has been a whistle-stop tour of social media, but if you want more detail, do check out our ebook, Get Ahead’s Essential Guide to Social Media. It’s full of insights and data that will help you decide how to get the most from your digital marketing – well worth a read.
