Categorized as Social Media

6 Top Social Media Platforms for Business

illustration of youtube, facebook, instagram
by Andre Oentoro Originally published   ·  Updated 

Every savvy marketer knows that social media is just too powerful to ignore. With at least 4.1 billion users worldwide, it has now become a crucial marketing channel to attract more audiences and engage them faster.

For business use itself, no social media platforms are created the same. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, even LinkedIn have their own characteristics in the way of helping you spread your message and missions. 

With over 65 social media platforms out there, it can be painful to choose ones that can bring you the most bang of profits. 

You might think that you could use all the social platforms available so that you would reap all the benefits. But, how can you handle and manage them all?

It’s only a waste of time and energy.

That’s why you need to understand each social media platform before you use it as your marketing channel.

Here are the top eight social media platforms that you need to consider using for your business.

Facebook

When we talk about social media platforms for business, we talk about Facebook. The most use channel for every digital marketing campaigns.

This social media platform has over 1 billion active users every day. It should come as no surprise that Facebook is such an ideal place to find your target customers, interact with existing customers, and build your email lists.

Today, at least 86% of US marketers are using Facebook for advertising.

Facebook is a perfect platform if you want to reach broad audiences. It’s also a powerful marketing channel if you have extra bucks to invest in their paid ads.

With Facebook Ads, you can create targeted advertising, so you can get your message across to the right audience at the right time.

LinkedIn

People don’t use LinkedIn profile for entertainment or buying online products. They mostly use it to learn more about a business profile, see what their prospects or professional contacts are up to, or look for career opportunities.

Yes. You can say that this platform is all about career development, create resumes, professional connections, industry discussions, and other business-related activities.

So, if you aim for professionals or B2B marketers as your target audience, there’s no better platform than LinkedIn. It’s an ideal platform to distribute your business-related content.

LinkedIn might not sound as “fun” like other social media platforms. But, this social networking platform has more than 65 million active users worldwide, making it a great place for making connections and establishing partnerships to generate more leads and boost your brand awareness.

Instagram

Instagram is a visual-based social media platform where you can post videos, images, memes, GIFs, emojis, and… selfies. 

If you rely on visual content for your overall marketing tactics or strategy, then Instagram would be a perfect platform for your business.

With more than 1.16 billion global users, Instagram offers a dramatic reach for your brand.

Instagram also actively embraces more and more marketing features to entice more marketers using the platform.

You can create a business account to promote your brand and display all the product’s photos or videos. 

This platform also allows you to create shoppable posts where your followers can easily shop directly from the platform within a few clicks.

Twitter

Twitter is probably the most reliable platform when it comes to interacting with your customers. Therefore, many businesses use this platform to give their customers accessible, direct customer support.

It also allows you to show off your brand’s personality and voice. By doing so, you can create top-of-mind awareness, making your customers remember and recognize your brand in the long term.

So, if you want a platform that allows you to promote your brand straightforwardly and showcasing your brand personality, no social media platform can beat Twitter.

Look how Wendy’s uses their Twitter account to show off their brand persona while having a little bit of fun with current trends.

Pinterest

All of us can admit that Pinterest is one of the most popular image-sharing platforms right now — along with Instagram, of course. On this platform, you can find tons of photos, graphics, links, and inspiration for nearly anything you’re looking for.

The majority of users on this platform are planners who look for ideas or inspiration for their projects. More often than not, people come to the platform when they are in the early stages of a project or purchase decision.

You need to remember that this platform is all about eye-pleasing images that bring aesthetic feels.

That is what makes Pinterest a crucial platform for a marketer who aims to showcase their product visuals and rely on aesthetics as their focal point.

YouTube

So, when was the last time you watched a YouTube video? A couple of hours ago? Me too…

Everyone is watching YouTube videos right now. From those shot on iPhone memes to educational explainer videos, hours and hours are easily spent on this platform.

Now, it makes sense why YouTube has become the second-largest search engine worldwide — right after Google.

No social media platform does a better job than YouTube to host your marketing videos. With 1 billion active users, this video-sharing platform is perfect for your video marketing campaigns.

One thing you need to bear in mind, though. Since there are 500 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute, it’s easy to get your video lost in the flood. 

In this case, you need to optimize your videos to make them stand out by investing in video SEO.

Final Thoughts

Social media has now become a profitable platform for marketers. They are such perfect places to find new target customers and engage with them in no time.

However, using social media platforms as marketing channels is pretty much all about how you choose and utilize them. You can always use a social media scheduler to make your work easier.

It’s important to research each social media platform before you decide to use any of them. Make sure you understand the majority of users, demographics, values, or trends that users are excited about in every platform.

There are so many social media management tools available to help you save some time and ensure your content reaches the right audience.

That way, you can effectively promote your business to people that actually care about your product or service. And that’s how you can skyrocket your conversion rate seamlessly.

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About the Author

Natasha Rei is the Digital Marketing Manager of Explainerd, an explainer video production agency. She ensures strategic goals are met by directing online and social media campaigns.

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