How To Choose The Best Social Media Platform For Your Business
Finding the best social media platform for your brand can be one of the challenging parts of running a business. After all, you have many different needs and goals, from nurturing your customers to growing your reach into new markets. In this post, I’ll walk you through five steps to help you choose the best social media platform for your business.
STEP 1: CONSIDER THE NATURE OF YOUR BUSINESS
Before choosing a social media platform, it’s important to think about what kinds of businesses or customers you’re looking to target. If your business is B2B, then LinkedIn may be the best option for you. However, if your goal is to spread more awareness about your brand or improve your customer service, then Facebook might be more appropriate than LinkedIn.
If none of these sounds like they fit well with your business goals, don’t worry! There are many other options out there besides Facebook and LinkedIn that can work great for your business.
STEP 2: KNOW YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE
Knowing your audience is also important when choosing a social media platform. You’d want to know their personality, what type of content they like, their demographics, etc. The answers will help you determine which platforms work best for your business goals. For example, if you’re selling clothing and accessories, Instagram could be a good choice because it’s more visual than Facebook or Twitter.
If you are still starting to get to know your audience, I suggest that you join groups where your target market is and observe them there.
STEP 3: RESEARCH YOUR COMPETITORS
Social media has made it easier to spy on your competitors unless they don’t care about their online presence. By checking their strategies, you’ll get an idea on where to put most of your efforts. Here are the things that you want to know about your competitors:
- What social media platforms they are using?
- What are they doing on their social media accounts?
- How are they performing on social media? Are they getting engagements? What do people say about them?
- What strategies work for them?
STEP 4: MATCH THE PLATFORM WITH YOUR AUDIENCE
Choose a platform where your audience spends most of their time in. Consider how much time and money you have for creating content on different platforms. These 2 are essential for your success on social media.
Always remember that it is better to be consistent on just one platform rather than being on all of the platforms and then leaving your followers hanging for a long time because you got burned out.
STEP 5: CREATE A STRATEGY IN YOUR CHOSEN SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM
Be realistic with your goals. A successful campaign starts by defining what success looks like for your business. You don’t have to set the bar too high, but if you want to make money with your business on social media, then there are things that will help you get there.
For example, if all you’re trying to do is create awareness around an upcoming event or in the launching of a new product line, then maybe this isn’t right for your business—but if all of those things are part of your marketing campaign that helps in increasing your sales/revenue and leads (i.e., increased conversions), then this could be something worth pursuing further down the road.
BONUS!
If after following these 5 steps you are still undecided on what social platforms to use then some of this data might help.
It’s important to understand what you are trying to achieve with your social media strategy before choosing a platform. This will help you make the best decision for your business and lead you down the right path.
Do you need help in creating a social media marketing plan? You can grab a FREE copy of my ultimate step-by-step guide on HOW TO CREATE A SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING PLAN.
Finding the best social media platform for your brand can be one of the challenging parts of running a business. After all, you have many different needs and goals, from nurturing your customers to growing your reach into new markets. In this post, I’ll walk you through five steps to help you choose the best social media platform for your business.
STEP 1: CONSIDER THE NATURE OF YOUR BUSINESS
Before choosing a social media platform, it’s important to think about what kinds of businesses or customers you’re looking to target. If your business is B2B, then LinkedIn may be the best option for you. However, if your goal is to spread more awareness about your brand or improve your customer service, then Facebook might be more appropriate than LinkedIn.
If none of these sounds like they fit well with your business goals, don’t worry! There are many other options out there besides Facebook and LinkedIn that can work great for your business.
STEP 2: KNOW YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE
Knowing your audience is also important when choosing a social media platform. You’d want to know their personality, what type of content they like, their demographics, etc. The answers will help you determine which platforms work best for your business goals. For example, if you’re selling clothing and accessories, Instagram could be a good choice because it’s more visual than Facebook or Twitter.
If you are still starting to get to know your audience, I suggest that you join groups where your target market is and observe them there.
STEP 3: RESEARCH YOUR COMPETITORS
Social media has made it easier to spy on your competitors unless they don’t care about their online presence. By checking their strategies, you’ll get an idea on where to put most of your efforts. Here are the things that you want to know about your competitors:
- What social media platforms they are using?
- What are they doing on their social media accounts?
- How are they performing on social media? Are they getting engagements? What do people say about them?
- What strategies work for them?
STEP 4: MATCH THE PLATFORM WITH YOUR AUDIENCE
Choose a platform where your audience spends most of their time in. Consider how much time and money you have for creating content on different platforms. These 2 are essential for your success on social media.
Always remember that it is better to be consistent on just one platform rather than being on all of the platforms and then leaving your followers hanging for a long time because you got burned out.
STEP 5: CREATE A STRATEGY IN YOUR CHOSEN SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM
Be realistic with your goals. A successful campaign starts by defining what success looks like for your business. You don’t have to set the bar too high, but if you want to make money with your business on social media, then there are things that will help you get there.
For example, if all you’re trying to do is create awareness around an upcoming event or in the launching of a new product line, then maybe this isn’t right for your business—but if all of those things are part of your marketing campaign that helps in increasing your sales/revenue and leads (i.e., increased conversions), then this could be something worth pursuing further down the road.
BONUS!
If after following these 5 steps you are still undecided on what social platforms to use then some of this data might help.
It’s important to understand what you are trying to achieve with your social media strategy before choosing a platform. This will help you make the best decision for your business and lead you down the right path.
Do you need help in creating a social media marketing plan? You can grab a FREE copy of my ultimate step-by-step guide on HOW TO CREATE A SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING PLAN.
Geraldine Calixtro
She is a social media manager passionate about real estate and marketing. She loves working with
different clients and learning about their businesses. Her goal is to help business owners grow their
business on social media.