Picking social media channels for your business isn’t a straightforward task. With numerous social media channels to choose from, identifying the right ones for your business can prove fairly challenging.
So, how do you identify which channels are suitable for your business? Whether you’re just getting started with social media marketing or looking to build your existing online presence, here’s what you should consider when choosing social media channels.
Identify Your Target Audience
Your audience is undoubtedly the most important factor you should consider when picking social media channels. To establish your primary audience, find out which social media platforms your target customers use most.
Additionally, look into demographics, such as your target audience’s age, gender, language, and so on. These demographics will help you choose appropriate social media networks.
For instance, if you discover that your target audience consists mostly of women, you may want to give Pinterest priority. Women make up more than 60% of Pinterest’s primary audience.
Consider Your Brand and Industry
While Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Twitter are the top social media platforms for marketers, it doesn’t mean all five channels are suitable for your business. Depending on your brand and industry, certain social media platforms may be more suitable for your business than others.
For instance, you should prioritize LinkedIn if you run a B2B business. On the other hand, if you run a B2C e-commerce store that sells highly visual products, Instagram and Pinterest will be more suitable for your business since they’ll allow you to showcase stunning visuals to your customers.
Establish Your Competitors
Next, analyze your competition. When researching your competitors, your competitor analysis should provide insights on:
- What networks your competitors are using
- What channels deliver the highest engagement
- Post frequency
While you shouldn’t mimic everything your competitors do, gaining insights into your competitors can help you choose suitable social media channels for your business. Additionally, it can help you learn how to use the channels you eventually pick effectively.
Establish Your Social Media Marketing Goals
Every social media network is unique, and different networks provide different advantages. Therefore, certain networks may help you achieve your social media goals better than others.
So, before choosing a social media platform for your business, consider your top social media goals. Some common social media goals for businesses include increasing brand awareness, generating leads, providing customer support, increasing web traffic, and enhancing customer engagement.
Once you identify your top objectives, you’ll be able to choose channels suitable for your business. For instance, if providing customer support and driving web traffic are key objectives, Facebook and Twitter, rather than TikTok, should be key channels for your business.
Consider the Type of Content You Have
Go through the content you already have or determine the main type of content you plan to create if you don’t have any content yet. Doing so is crucial because certain content formats are better suited to particular social media platforms than others.
For example, if you’ll share a lot of editorial content for B2B audiences, LinkedIn and Medium should be your go-to channels. On the other hand, if you’ll create many short videos, Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat should be top priorities for your business.
Check Your Existing Traffic Sources
You definitely don’t want to expend resources on social media platforms that drive little or no traffic to your website. Fortunately, if your website already receives substantial traffic, you can check out where most of the traffic comes from using Google Analytics.
Check out the Google Analytics channels report for an overview of the top social media channels driving the most traffic to your website. Doing so can allow you to determine which networks to prioritize.
For instance, if you were considering starting a LinkedIn account, yet the report reveals that Instagram drives far more traffic and conversions, you may want to dedicate more resources to Instagram. If you need help identifying where your web traffic is coming from, get in touch with the professionals at OnePoint Business Solutions for assistance.
Consider Your Resources
Managing social media channels isn’t something you should do sporadically. It’s a full-time job. Before choosing social media platforms, determine whether you have sufficient personnel to manage all the platforms you want to be on.
If you only have one person to manage your social media, consider limiting your channels to a maximum of two. On the other hand, you can have several channels if you have a large social media team.
Nonetheless, resources aren’t limited to only people. When considering resources, consider whether you’ll be able to dedicate time to all the channels you want to use. Additionally, consider the social media marketing tools you intend to use. While many social media marketing tools come with free plans, many come with paid plans for access to premium features.
How Many Social Media Platforms Should You Manage?
Unfortunately, there isn’t a straightforward answer to the number of social media channels you should manage. Ultimately, the number of channels you should manage will depend on your unique circumstances.
While picking several channels could increase your brand visibility and allow you to reach numerous customers, you could also stretch yourself too thin if you don’t have sufficient personnel to manage your channels.
Therefore, as a general rule, after considering the factors already mentioned, identify the channels you want to use. Then, pick one and get it up and running before creating another channel.
Social Media Marketing Services in Frederick, MD
According to a recent report, people spend an average of two hours and 27 minutes on social media every day, making social media crucial to the success of your business. However, with all the social media platforms available, choosing appropriate channels can prove quite challenging.
Therefore, before choosing social media channels for your business, consider the above factors to narrow down your options and pick suitable channels.
If you don’t have the personnel to manage your social media accounts, OnePoint Business Solutions can help you. We provide various digital marketing services to businesses across the U.S. and Canada. Contact us online or call us at (888) 665-8386 to learn more about our services.