Which Social Media Should You Be on for Your Business?

By Joe Fylan on June 26, 2014

Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest are great ways to promote your business and find an audience for your website. However, with so many different options available, realizing the potential of social media can be difficult for those with limited time or resources.

Focusing on one platform can often be the best option for those starting out with social media.

If being everywhere all the time isn’t a viable option for you and your business, focusing on one platform to master can be the best choice for getting the most out of social media.

In this post we will take a look at the different social media platforms to help you decide which one is the best fit for your business. This will allow you to focus on the platform that will deliver the greatest results for your website and business.

Have you Already Started?

While one form of social media might be a better match for your business and target audience, if you are already using a different social network and getting results, then the best option for you might be just to keep going with what is working.

Any prior experience should be harnessed to help promote your business.

Also, if you already use Facebook, for example, to keep in touch with friends and family, it might be worth leveraging your knowledge and experience of that platform to start promoting your business.

This is even if Facebook might not be the best form of social media for your type of business. If you are already on a platform and know how to use it, and aren’t overjoyed by the thought of picking up another one, then for the sake of efficiency and motivation, it might be best tostick with what you know.

But if you’ve yet to start using social media, or are excited by the prospect of trying a new platform to promote their business, here’s a bit to know about the main options, and which type of audience and business they’re best suited to.

Conclusion

Each of the four main social networks covered here have their own strengths and weaknesses, as well as their individual aspects which make them better suited towards specific types of businesses and the audiences they are seeking.

Social media requires an ongoing investment of your time,

The fast-paced nature of social media means that it’s necessary to interact with your chosen network on a regular basis. This will ensure you will not only get the most from your profile, but also to avoid negatively portraying your brand with an out-of-date, deserted social profile.

Facebook. For those who want a good all-rounder that can handle all types of content, from images, videos, and text, as well as being used by all sectors of society, then Facebook is the best choice, providing you have the time to invest on setting up and managing your page.

Creating a Twitter profile is very easy to get started with.

Twitter. Twitter meanwhile is easy to get started with and content can be created very efficiently. The networking and news sharing features cannot be overlooked either, and the notifications and listening abilities make it easy to keep track of how your brand is being talked about.

For certain sectors and demographics, Pinterest has huge potential.

Pinterest. If your business allows you to produce high quality sharable images, that fall into the most popular categories of content posted on Pinterest, then Pinterest has great potential. However, if you can’t imagine where your images will come from, then it’s not the best choice.

LinkedIn. Finally LinkedIn has its uses, such as connecting with other professionals, creating a socially verifiable online resume, and even finding your next employee, but promoting your business to potential customers is best left to another channel.