Information in this blog post was obtained from HubSpot Blog, SEMrush, and Sprouts Social.
Do you remember when Facebook was the next big thing? It seemed like everyone was scrambling to be a part of this new and exciting social media platform. Then, not too long after that, YouTube came along. Next it was Instagram, then Twitter, Pinterest, Snapchat, and now TikTok. At this rate, it’s getting hard to keep up with all the social media platforms. Now I know what you’re thinking. Why am I telling you all of this? What does it have to do with you? Remember that as a future professional in the social media marketing world, you want to keep track of all the tools available to you so that you can be as successful as possible. Social media platforms are the basis of social media marketing, because after all, they are what makes up social media. The unique thing about social media marketing is that it changes depending on which social media you choose to use. That’s why it’s so important to stay updated on each platform, because it you don’t, then you will never be able to reach your potential as an individual or help your business do the same. In this blog post, we will go through the general purposes of all social media platforms, break down the best way to use four of them for social media marketing, and discuss the unique benefits that each platform offers.
General Purposes of Social Media Platforms
Sprouts Social has a great post that helps outline the overall purposes for almost all social media platforms. Although each platform is different, which we will touch on later, they all have the same basic purpose; to create a profit through social media marketing. Obviously, all social media platforms are essential to social media marketing because without them, it would just be marketing. Below is a list of the five most common reasons that businesses use social media in their SM marketing strategy.
1. Selling Products
Almost all social media platforms now have the tools that enable people to sell products on their site. Think about how many products you see every day just scrolling through your feed. Not only do numerous social platforms offer easy ways to sell your products, but they also make it even easier to link to a website that sells your products as well. This leads to more consumers making a purchase simply because it’s so easy for them to locate and obtain your product without ever leaving the comfort of their own home.
2. Building Communities
Another important purpose of social media platforms is to build communities and relationships with customers. Connecting with your customers should be a large part of your social media marketing strategy because you can’t sell your product to people who don’t know about you. Social media is a fantastic, easy, and cheap way to build communities that will lead people to you and your products.
3. Carrying Out Customer Service
Customer service can be an overlooked part of business. However, having good customer service might be the reason that someone chooses to come back to your business for more. Social media offers a great way to build up a good customer service reputation. People can leave reviews, tag you in their post of your product, and even repost some of your content. Not only is this good for building your brand but think about the number of people it allows you to reach as well.
4. Sharing Videos
Virtually every social media platform has some sort of video capability. Reels, stories, or regular posts can all be in picture or video form. Given that visual content is one of the most popular and effective forms of media, it’s important that you utilize this tool in your social media marketing strategy. These videos can be long or short depending on the platform you are using. Regardless of their length, they should all achieve the same purpose, to market your product, reach customers, and make a profit.
5. Posting Brand Updates
The last important purpose of social media platforms is to post brand updates. This allows for people to see the success of your business which helps you to gain credibility. Brand updates could also be what draws in and attracts new customers as well. People want to learn about the company they are invested in. By providing these updates, customers can see the journey of your business and feel like they are a part of it as well. This helps build a relationship and leads them to become more committed to you and your brand.
As you can see, social media platforms have lots of uses. It’s important to keep these purposes in mind when you are creating a social media marketing strategy. Next, we are going to go over five of the most common social media platforms and discuss how to use social media marketing on them for the best possible results.
Social Media Marketing on Different Social Platforms
Although there are plenty of social media platforms out there for you to use, for the sake of time, we are only going to touch on four of the most popular ones. Although each of these platforms is different, they can still all be used in your social media marketing strategy at the same time because they all offer sometime unique.
1. Facebook
Facebook was founded in 2004 and has roughly 2.9 billion monthly users according to SEMrush. Despite being launched almost 20 years ago, this platform is still a great tool to use in social media marketing. HubSpot reports in one of their blog posts that there was a 12 percent increase in usage from 2021 to 2022. Additionally, Facebook also promised over a 15 percent potential to grow a business’s audience in 2023. As a social media marketer this platform has lots of promise in reaching a massive audience. Before choosing to use Facebook in your social media marketing strategy, you should know that it’s best when used by small, local businesses that utilize social advertising. However, that doesn’t mean that it won’t be beneficial to large businesses as well. Below is a list of ways that businesses, both big and small, can implement this social platform into their SM marketing strategy after they set up a business account.
Claim your unique business URL
Optimize your “about” section
Include and eye-catching cover photo
Add a call to action
These actions are all things that can help improve your business Facebook page and lead more customers to your content. This social media platform is beneficial due to the huge audience that it has the potential to reach. Facebook can also schedule posts, allow you to see how you compare to your competition, and analyze your content metrics. To learn more about Facebook go check out this SEMrush article.
2. Instagram
Instagram made its social media debut in 2010 which believe it or not, was 13 years ago. Since it first started, this platform has come a long way. It started with just photos but now has expanded to include stories, reels, story notes, direct messaging, and even live videos. There are two types of accounts on this platform, personal and business. The only main difference between the two is that business account provides more analytics than a personal account does. This platform is the one that is most popular in creating visual content, so you will want it in your back pocket as a social media marketer. HubSpot has a short list of how to get started with a business account on Instagram.
Set up a shop or website where users can buy your products directly
Add contact information to your profile (in your bio is a great place)
Put links to your products in your stories
Promote and when possible, boost your posts
Instagram is unique platform that is continually growing. It proved to have a 35 percent increase in followers from 2021 to 2022 and promises a 25 potential to grow your audience in 2023. This platform ranks highest is both categories making it a crucial part of any social media marketing strategy.
3. TikTok
This platform is the most recent of all the ones discussed in this blog post dating back to 2016. Still less than a decade old, this social media platform has become the fastest global social media platform to reach 1 billion users. The main content used here is short videos based around the latest trends and memes. This platform is a great in social media marketing especially when you want to reach a younger audience. HubSpot gives a few pointers on how to use TikTok for your social media marketing needs.
Use top-viewed or in-feed advertisements
Create effects tied to your brand that users can put in their own videos
Start your own brand hashtag to raise brand awareness and increase engagement
Like Instagram, this platform is rapidly growing with a 15 increase in users from 2021-2022 and a 20 percent potential to increase a business’s audience in 2023. TikTok is second in both categories only to Instagram which makes sense considering Instagram has been around 6 years longer. TikTok is not only useful for reaching a large and young audience, but it has huge potential for the future that your business will want to be a part of.
4. YouTube
YouTube came about in 2005 and since then, has become a video empire. With 2.56 billion monthly users, this social media platform shows no signs of slowing down. As a social media marketer, this platform should definitely be used in your strategy, especially since it has the highest return on investment (ROI) of any social platform. On top of that, YouTube as shown a 10 percent increase in users from 2021 to 2022 and has a 15 percent potential to help businesses increase their audience in 2023. Listed below are five simple things that HubSpot suggest businesses should do when building their social media marketing strategy on YouTube.
Create a YouTube channel connected to your brand
Upload a short video telling consumers what your brand is about
Interact with viewers in the comments
Organize your videos
Share your YouTube videos on other accounts
Even if you don’t use videos in your social media marketing strategy, remember that you can still use this social media platform for its advertisement capabilities. This allows you to reach a variety of different viewers with the same ad and, when done right, can be very effective.
Creating a Plan
Now that you have a better idea of how each some popular social media platforms work and what they have to offer your next step should be to learn more. We only covered four in this post, but there are over 25 platforms that SEMrush touches on in their article. Keep in mind that the more you know about each social media platform, the better you can integrate each one into your social media marketing strategy, and the more effective you will be as a social media marketer. Remember to choose the social media platforms that align with your goals and desires. Social media can be used for a variety of different purposes, which we talked about, so make sure to identify which purpose who want to accomplish on each platform. Also, think about what type of content best fits your brand as well because that will help you to decide how to fit each platform into your social media marketing plan. For more great information about social media platforms and how to use them, check out my college James’s blog post here. Remember that practice is key. Take time to experiment with different social media platforms, figure out how they work best for you and your company, and then piece together an awesome social media marketing strategy!
Resources
Hill, C. (2022, April 11). 15+ social media platforms your brand should use in 2022. Sprouts Social. Retrieved April 17, 2023, from https://sproutsocial.com/insights/social-media-platforms/.
Lyons, K. (2022, November 1). 28 top social media platforms worldwide. SEMrush. Retrieved April 17, 2023, from https://www.semrush.com/blog/most-popular-social-media-platforms/.
Needle, F. (2023, February 6). Social media platforms marketers should watch in 2023. HubSpot. Retrieved April 17, 2023, from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/new-social-media.
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