Should I Be Using Every Social Media Platform for Business Success?
At Idea Marketing Group, we’re often asked by our current and potential clients, “Should I be on every social media platform?” Simply put, the answer is usually no. Not every social media platform is the right fit for every business. For some, Facebook and LinkedIn are better, while for other businesses Twitter and Instagram are more appropriate.
Marketing on multiple social platforms is a great idea, but if the content and audience are all wrong, or if the branding isn’t right marketing on that platform is destined for failure.
When we meet and consult with our clients, we suggest using a few social media platforms, at the most 2-3 on which to publish content. It’s important not to spread yourself thin when using social media. We suggest starting with at least 2 platforms and building it up with consistency. Using social media for your business is great, but only if you are engaging and monitoring it on a daily basis. Social Media Marketing is time-consuming, so it’s best to be smart and stay focused.
Social Media Platform Demographics
Depending on demographics and the targeted users, there are certain platforms companies should avoid. The demographics are different for each platform, and it’s important to know what they are. Social media management platform Sprout Social reported the 2020 demographics for social media.
Facebook and Instagram Users
Facebook remains one of the most used social media platforms, with about 79% of its users ranging in age from 18 to 49. About 75% of women are on Facebook. Facebook has a range of options you can use for your social media marketing efforts, whether it’s paid advertising, video content, Facebook Lives or organic content, you can rarely go wrong with using Facebook as a platform for your business.
Bought by Facebook some time ago, Instagram is second to Facebook in platform popularity. About 72% of their users are aged 13 to 17, and 67% of their audience is 18 to 29, so if your business caters to teens and young adults, Instagram would be the platform to use.
This app-only platform has about 43% of females, and 31% of males in its demographic. Instagram has a variety of options as well to help you advertise your business to users, from Instagram advertising to linking a Shopify store and using Instagram Stories or IGTV. Instagram is quickly becoming the app for advertisement for many businesses.
Twitter Users
Unlike Facebook and Instagram, Twitter isn’t used by as many people, but there are still users that your business may want to target. With about 38% of users ranging from ages 18 to 29, Twitter is a place where individuals can find news and trending topics. If you use Twitter, you should have a more consistent and built-out strategy and editorial calendar for it, as Twitter is a place where people post as much content as they can.
LinkedIn Users
Social Media experts describe LinkedIn as Facebook for professionals. LinkedIn is similar to Twitter in that it may not be the best place to share your content. B2B businesses can do well on LinkedIn by sharing content that is relevant to their industry and that users will find useful in their daily work.
LinkedIn isn’t recommended for B2C businesses looking to gain exposure to new products. LinkedIn is a niche platform only visited more than once a day by 9% of users in the United States, making daily usage of the platform significantly lower than Facebook and Instagram.
When choosing which social media platform to use, it’s important to look at these demographics and really take your time deciding who it is your business is targeting.
What Type of Content Should Go on My Social Media Platform?
No matter which social media platforms you decided to use, focus on creating relationship-building content. You can be pushing your content to Facebook or Twitter and have a huge platform, but if it’s not receiving the engagement it should then it might be time to rethink your content. When creating content, you need to give the audience a reason to look at what your brand has to say and engage with it.
With relationship-building content, steer clear of stock images of people. They can put a barrier between you and your audience. It’s better to put a face to your business by showcasing your team to the people who visit your business. For any content you’re sharing on your platforms, it’s important to ensure it’s personal and familiar, giving a voice to your brand.
Using social media is all about connecting with the right people, your past customers, and your potential customers, no matter what platform you’re publishing to or if you’re using 1 or 3 platforms, be personable and create or share your voice.
One final tip is to align your social media strategy with your SEO marketing plan. By creating great SEO content you drive organic traffic to your website. But you can also create numerous pieces of social content from one large piece of SEO content. Once posted these can drive more traffic to content pieces and create a more cohesive marketing plan.
