With more than 65 percent of adults using social media today, it’s integral to the success of your small business to be actively present on Facebook and Twitter. While social media is a great way to connect with brand advocates, many small business owners wonder which social networks they should join. To help you decide where to focus your efforts, we compiled a list of the top five social media channels and decoded how they can help you grow your business.
Facebook is the largest social media platform with more than 1.1 billion people using the site daily. Every business should have a Facebook brand page for fans to follow, engage with, and reference.
How to use Facebook as a small brand?
Facebook is the perfect tool to help you tell your brand story. You can post videos, stories, links, and updates that will help keep your brand relevant. If you are looking to reach a wider audience, you can also use Facebook ads to capture leads.
Twitter is another popular social media platform and boasts approximately 215 million active users. Twitter’s popularity is focused on getting your message out in 140 characters or less, and is a great way to cleverly craft brand messages that will resonate with followers.
How to use Twitter as a small brand?
Small brands can use Twitter to break news, post pictures and videos, run contests, connect with fans, advertise, and grow their fan base. Another popular feature of Twitter is the hashtag. Brands can either hitch a ride on already popular hashtags or create their own branded hashtags.
Small business owners should think of Pinterest as the world’s largest bulletin board; there are more than 70 million Pinterest users. After you set up your Pinterest profile, you can create boards that tell your brand’s story and resonate with your followers.
How to use Pinterest as a small brand?
Pinterest is centered around using images that relate to your brand. Whenever you create and share content, remember to include a high-quality image for Pinterest. This makes it possible for you and your followers to share your content on Pinterest and will ultimately lead to more traffic to your website.
LinkedIn, a social platform for professionals, has more than 230 million users. LinkedIn acts as an online resume where you can post information about yourself and your business.
How to use LinkedIn for your small business?
Many small businesses will use LinkedIn as a way to build credibility. LinkedIn has a built-in blogging feature where you can post business information and solidify yourself as an industry expert. If you are looking to connect with other brands and industry professionals, then LinkedIn is for you.
YouTube
With 1 billion visitors each month, YouTube is arguably the most popular video platform on the market. Simply put, video is the most consumable type of content and a great way to grow your brand.
How to use YouTube for your small business?
Small businesses should use YouTube to create fun videos, product tutorials, educational videos, and more. The more you can get your message out with the help of video, the more opportunities your customers will have to engage with your brand.
For more ways to grow your business through social media, read “10 Ways to Use Social Media to Acquire More Customers.”