How to select the right Social Media platform for your small business
Social media is one of the most effective marketing methods to help a small business grow an audience and find new customers. Each social media platform is different with its own user base, features and algorithms.
Although you may think being present on every platform is the most effective method of increasing your customer base, it can actually do more harm than good. We know as a small business owner your time is very precious so it's important to use it wisely.
Spending time setting up an account on each platform and trying to actively post on everyone is unrealistic. Most businesses end up not posting at all, posting inconsistently or posting content that has no real value to their customers.
Founders then end up completely dropping the platform altogether leaving them with inactive accounts that look unprofessional to potential customers. The best way to effectively reach your audience is by spending time on the platform/s that will be most beneficial to your business and focusing your time and efforts on it.
We urge you to go deep on only ONE platform.
So how do you decide which platform is best for your business? Well here's our short guide to help you make the decision and save your precious time and money.
Firstly, think about your business, what are your values? What is your message? and most importantly, who are your customers?
A great strategy to help with this is simply by creating a customer persona. Start by writing a little brief or bullet points about who your average customer is. Include factors like age, where they live, their profession, their interests, their personality traits and hobbies.
Now think about what would be important to your customers? What interests them? Where do they spend most of their time? Is it on Facebook or LinkedIn? Think about the type of content they might enjoy, is it long videos or maybe pictures? These answers will help you determine which platform is right for your business.
But if you’re still unsure, here are some stats and a summary of the most popular platforms to help you determine if they might be right for you.
The largest platform with over 2.8 billion users
Men make up 57%
Women make up 43%
The largest age range is 30-49
34% of its audience are 25-39
Used on both mobile and desktop devices
Live videos receive the best interactions with images and videos coming in second and third
It’s a broad platform consisting of people with many interests
Features: groups, pages, direct messages, watch, marketplace
Easy to segment the app to find specific audiences using the groups and pages feature
People often use Facebook for news
It has the best ad revenue results compared to other apps
The second most downloaded app
Used mostly on mobile devices
The average age group is 18-29
62% of users log on once a day
83% of users discover new products and services on the platform
200 million users check at least 1 business profile a day
Carousels get the most organic reach
The best captions are just 10 words long
Emojis are recommended to reach the best engagement
The most popular videos are ‘how to’ content
IGTV and Reels are top-performing content
70% of users are male
30% are female
25-34 age demographic
58% of users get their news from Twitter
5% of users say it’s their most-used platform
Twitter website carousel ads saw an average 15% increase in CTR over single-asset ads
The app is mostly used for discussions, news and sharing
56% are male
44% are female
The average age group is 30- 49
25% of users are at senior level positions
The biggest business social media site
2nd most popular platform for B2B marketers behind Facebook
52% of buyers list LinkedIn as the most influential channel for their purchase decision
Tiktok
62% of users are aged 10-29
59 are female
41 are male
90% of users use the app every day
65 million are located in the US
29% of teens say it’s their favourite platform
High engagement rate with influencers
14% of marketers plan to up their spending in 2021 however, only 3% see it as the most effective social media channel
Best used by posting fun content rather than spending on ads
Highest social media engagement rate per post
TIP - Follow the trends to get noticed! Whether that’s trending sounds or popular content
Popular categories include fitness/sport, home renovation/DIY, beauty, skincare, fashion, cooking, life hacks, advice, pets and outdoors.
Social media is always changing and adapting but by being strategic you can make incredible profits from these platforms. We hope we’ve helped you figure out the best platform for your small business but don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t work straight away. Remember to be consistent and focus on valuable content for your audience. If you need more guidance, we’re here to help!
If you are trying to grow your business and need advice, join our peer learning programme. The Engine Room is a community where you can talk to like-minded business owners to discuss concerns, achievements, and everyday business challenges.
It provides expert guidance through weekly Zoom sessions in small close-knit groups of 6. The sessions include expert-led masterclasses delivered every 3 weeks by our wonderful partners. This is your chance to be part of an engaged community of founders, delivering business growth and collaboration. To find out more please visit https://www.enterpriseorchard.co.uk/the-engine-room