Social media reigns supreme in the world of digital marketing. So much so that it has become essential for a new business to create an account on at least one platform to gain visibility and brand awareness. But if you’re not a community manager, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by all the different social media platforms out there, along with their settings and features. To help you make an informed decision, we’re providing all the information you need to choose the right social media platform to grow your business.
Why be on social media?
While social media is often associated with leisure and hobbies, it actually represents a powerful marketing tool for any business. That’s right—it’s a highly effective way to reach your audience and build brand awareness without spending a dime! In addition to increasing brand awareness, social media allows you to bring your brand closer to your customers and potential customers. This will bring you two very positive benefits.
First, you’ll be able to interact directly with your audience, which will humanize your brand and make it much easier to build loyalty within your community. But it also lets you get real-time feedback on all your communications! Have you redecorated your store? What do your online followers think? Are you launching a new product line? Are your followers eager to try it out? Head over to the comments to see all the reactions! You can even ask them questions directly about your products—and about themselves: What’s your favorite color? Would you be interested in this service? Do you prefer the beach or the countryside? And so on.
There’s no better way to refine your targeting than by analyzing your followers’ actions and comments—it’s a goldmine of information right at your fingertips! But above all, brand awareness and an engaged community translate into sales! Social media directly impacts your online popularity—what’s known as your online reputation. The stronger and more successful your online reputation is, the more people will want to buy your products or use your services!
How many social media platforms should you be on?
The most common mistake is trying to be everywhere to reach as many people as possible on as many platforms as possible. But is that really effective? And more importantly, do you have the resources to be everywhere? Keep in mind when making your decision that managing a social media account is a real job that takes time. Between content strategy, creating posts with visuals and even videos, and daily engagement through posting Stories and responding to messages and comments… a community manager’s responsibilities are vast! Multiply all that work by the number of platforms you’re active on, and your man-hours will add up very quickly.
Never forget that it’s better to focus on one well-managed social media platform than on several that are all over the place. Instead of reaching more people, you’ll just end up spreading yourself too thin rather than growing your audience on a single platform. On the other hand, as the saying goes, you should never put all your eggs in one basket. Imagine that you’re very active on one platform, but it changes its terms of service or, worse, experiences a glitch. To be on the safe side, it might be a good ideato maintain a presence on at least two social media platforms—but only if it makes sense for you, both in terms of your business and your organizational structure.
In any case, you shouldn’t base your digital communication solely on social media. Social media should serve as an additional communication channel that complements your other digital marketing strategies, such as SEO, SEA, newsletters, your brand website, or e-commerce site, etc. Finally, it may also be pointless to have a presence on every social media platform if your target audience isn’t there. So don’t waste your time setting up a TikTok account if you provide services to B2B professionals.
Which social media platform should you choose?
With nearly 3 billion active users worldwide, including 40 million monthly active users in France, Facebook is the most popular and widely used social network. This is, of course, its main advantage. On Facebook, you can reach a wide range of people over the age of 25. That’s right—it’s no longer a secret: the Facebook community is aging, and it’s no longer just young people who use this social network. You should also know that Facebook will be particularly useful if you use advertising. In fact, there’s a good chance that, to get your content seen on this platform, you’ll need to spend a little money.
Fortunately, prices often remain affordable even when you’ve just launched your business. What’s more, Facebook advertising is a highly effective tool for reaching your target audience based on their location, interests, age, gender, and many other factors. With Facebook advertising, you can achieve results much faster!
This image-based social network is used daily by a large number of young people aged 12 to 35. It’s very popular and owned by Meta, the same company that owns Facebook, and it also has the advantage of bringing together several distinct types of communities. You can even tag a location in your posts to reach a local audience. If you’re just getting started on Instagram, you’ll need to put a lot of effort into your images and, above all, your videos. In fact, the video format continues to grow and is increasingly highlighted on the platform. So don’t skimp on creating Reels and IGTV videos. If you sell great products, then there’s no doubt about it: Instagram will be a powerful ally for your business!
This professional network has been growing steadily for several years. Originally intended solely for recruiters and job seekers, its core purpose has evolved significantly. Today, while it’s still obviously possible to recruit and find a job through this network, LinkedIn has become a platform for professionals from various sectors to connect . It features shared experiences, tips and information, invitations to events, and, of course, the offering of services. This is the only network where long-form text takes precedence over visuals and videos. It’s even very common to see posts without accompanying images (which is completely impossible on Instagram). If your business caters to B2B professionals, LinkedIn will certainly be a very effective tool for generating leads!
Twitter stands out from its competitors because of how it works. Here, the goal isn’t to post a few times a week, but to be active as often as possible every day. You can even tweet several times an hour if you want (and if you have something to say)! Twitter is the perfect platform if you have a lot of news to share and want to provide your community with regular updates. Keep in mind that it’s also an excellent monitoring tool for keeping tabs on your competition. Finally, Twitter is also known for being used as a customer service channel. Your customers can reach out to you on this platform. It’s a great way to enhance your customer experience!
Pinterest is a low-key platform because, at first glance, it doesn’t seem like a social network. Interaction among members is much less frequent than on other platforms. The system is simple: you post an image called a “pin,” and users can save it to their boards. The great strength of this platform is that you can gain significant visibility very quickly. A user can see a huge number of pins in record time just by scrolling through their feed. But most importantly, you can add a link to your pins, such as your website or blog. Someone compiling a list of gift ideas, clothing, or home decor might come across your image if it matches their search and, as a result, visit your website. Pinterest can be an excellent way to drive traffic and conversions, especially if you have a blog.
TikTok
There’s no way you haven’t heard of the TikTok phenomenon, the newest addition to the social media family! Its popularity has literally skyrocketed since its launch, making this app one of the most popular platforms, especially among young people. Nearly half of its users are between the ages of 16 and 24. On this social media platform, you’ll find nothing but short-form video content. Whether they’re funny, informative, beautiful, or surprising, the videos you see are tailored to your recent viewing history. This means your videos will be seen by people interested in your field. Finally, you can also connect with your community by launching challenges!
In summary, to choose the right social media platforms for your business, consider three criteria: your target audience, your industry, and the time you can dedicate to them. And you—which social media platforms are you active on? Do they meet these three criteria?
