As a business owner or entrepreneur, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by social media and trying to determine where you should and shouldn’t have a presence. There are so many options: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, TikTok, Clubhouse; the list goes on. However, with the right knowledge, you can create a strong social media presence without creating an account with every app. What social media platforms should your business be on and why?
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Who is your audience and where are they?
In order to target your social media presence, it’s important to identify your audience. Are most of your consumers Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, or are they Baby Boomers? While many people have accounts on a variety of social media platforms, each demographic has a fairly strong presence and engagement on specific platforms. According to The Manifest, Baby Boomers and Gen X report using Facebook most frequently, followed by Millennials and then Gen Z. On the other hand, more than 80% of Gen Z (89%) and Millennials (86%) use YouTube at least once a week. Additionally, per Sprout Social, TikTok (29%) recently surpassed Instagram (25%) as U.S. teens preferred social platform (both behind Snapchat).
What makes sense for your business?
Now that you’ve identified your audience, you need to consider what is the best fit for your industry. Is your business visually driven, like a restaurant or clothing? Visual platforms like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok will be key to building your presence. Do you provide professional services? It’s important to be laser focused on business-focused platforms like Facebook and even Yelp and Google My Business. Can you offer expert advice and guidance? Video based platforms like TikTok and YouTube are both easy to use apps that allow you to share tutorials or advice that is valuable to your target audience.
Recognize the differences in the platforms
Social media is a big undertaking, and it can be easy to create one piece of content and add it to each platform, however, it’s important to make note of how customers are using each platform. For example, if you’re a dentist and you’ve created a TikTok debunking myth about the latest teeth whitening trend, that content wouldn’t make sense to repost on LinkedIn. It would be great to share on Facebook, which is both business and visually focused.
Social media isn’t one-size-fits-all. This means you have the opportunity to cater to your customers and the platforms that they frequent. Don’t waste your time trying to have a presence on all platforms just because you feel like you need to. Use that time wisely and focus on areas that will help your business grow.
Mark Stewart is a former Fortune 50 leader and founder of the small business marketing and business accelerator, Concept2Completion. Mark serves on the board of directors for the East Valley Partnership, Job Creators Network and several business leadership organizations throughout Arizona.
