Social media can be a powerful tool for businesses looking to build a successful marketing strategy. In 2021, there are nearly 4 billion social media users worldwide alone – a five percent increase from the past year. Social media has become such an important part of people’s lives that it’s key to any successful marketing strategy.
But not all social media platforms are created equally. Picking the right social media platform for your small business isn’t easy. Each platform has its own set of users, demographics, and quirks. To succeed on social media, it’s crucial to understand these nuances before investing in any platform. Here are some of our big tips for picking the right social media platform for your business.
5 ways to pick the right social media platform for your business
Picking the right social platform can be difficult, especially with limited resources. Here are our favorite tips
- Focus on your audience
Audience is the most important factor when picking the right social media platform for your business. When it comes to picking the right social media platform, nothing else matters if your audience isn’t active on that particular platform. Do you know where your audience is most active? A majority of Americans use Facebook and YouTube, research shows. But if your audience isn’t on Facebook, for example, then there’s no reason to put your valuable resources as a small business owner towards Facebook.
- Let your business guide your decisions
When you’re picking the right social media platform, your business should be at the forefront of the decision. Think about your products or services, your brand personality, and your business when picking your primary social media platform.
For example, if your business has great visuals or strong video content, you might want to focus on Instagram or YouTube. If you run a B2B enterprise, you may want to shift your focus to LinkedIn.
Don’t forget to think outside the box: sometimes, small business’ content will work for a number of different platforms if repurposed correctly.
Your decision may not be as simple as just picking one platform. The average social media user has around 8.5 accounts, statistics show. You may need to weigh what makes sense for your business – and your audience.
- Audit your competitors
What are your competitors doing on social media? Consider conducting a competitive analysis of your competitors’ social media accounts to better understand what works for them – and what doesn’t. Look at the following factors:
- What platforms do they use?
- What content works well for them? What doesn’t?
- Measure engagement by channel
The insights can help inform your own strategy.
- Align with your marketing goals
Why is your small business on social media? And what do you hope to get out of it? The answers to these questions will impact your decisions as well. If you want to build brand awareness for your small business, the social media platform you pick will differ from someone whose goal is click-through to their website.
- Find your target audience
Picking the right social media platform isn’t just about finding your current audience. It’s also about locating your ideal audience, too. Once you’ve identified your target customer, you need to be consistent to master your platform.
- Understand your resources
There’s no doubt about it: social media is time consuming, especially for a small business. Social media is a big commitment, and whichever platform you pick, you need to dedicate the time and resources to it. If you only have one person dedicated to social media for five hours a week, you may want to stick with one or two platforms. If you have a full-time social media manager, you can choose a number of social media platforms. Social media has a tendency to take up much more time than any small business owner expects, so before starting any new channel, make sure to understand your resource allocations.
Wrap Up
Many small business owners feel that social media can be time consuming; no matter how much time they put in, social media always greedily asks for more. That’s why no matter what platform you pick, it’s important to dedicate the time to ensure your platform can flourish – and best serve your business. Sound overwhelming? Don’t worry, our marketing firm for small businesses in Massachusetts can help!
