Social Media and Marketing: Which Platform is Right for You?

 

 

 

With all the social media sites available to the marketer today, it can be hard to figure which ones to leverage. For large companies, one may decide to utilize all the popular platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Pinterest. For small businesses, it would be time-consuming and expensive to keep up with every single outlet.

So, which social media platform would you pick?

The answer isn’t as simple as one would think. Marketers have to choose the platforms that best fit their demographic target audience(s) and determine which platform best fits the company. Let’s break it down using Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

Twitter and LinkedIn are great platforms for marketers of publications and B2B businesses. Lead generation is a top priority for marketers and also poses a challenge for influencing consumer behavior. “Twitter users who see Tweets from B2B tech brands are more likely to visit the sites of these brands. [A] study found that Twitter users visit B2B tech brand sites at a higher rate (59%) compared to average Internet users (40%), illustrating the strong presence of a B2B audience on Twitter” (Saito, 2013). LinkedIn is a platform that B2B service providers can use to attract consumers. For instance, recruiting companies looking for potential candidates for employment would find this to be a useful outlet. LinkedIn also gives marketers a change to generate leads and influence the sharing of content with Twitter users. Both sites are desirable for marketers that are interested in increasing traffic and brand consideration.

Facebook is as social media platform that has many different uses. According to a study on Social Bakers, businesses with visually driven products would find this site helpful as photos and images account for 93% of the most engaging posts on Facebook. Only 2% of the most engaging content on Facebook is generated by links, another 2% by videos, and 3% by status updates (Social Baker, 2013). For instance, a company like Nikon would find Facebook to be beneficial since the brand attracts consumers by the quality of their cameras and the best way to attract potential customers is by posting photographs taken by their product line. B2C marketers would also find Facebook a great platform to display coupons and discounts since 92 % of B2C marketers use Facebook and find it easy to tailor content by profiling users through demographic, personalize preferences, and more (Lyle, 2013)

 

With so many social media platforms available, it is easy to choose one that does not fit the demographic marketers are trying to reach. For instance, say you wanted to market to men between the ages of 18 – 35 and the product is deodorant. “Pinterest shoppers are spending significantly more per checkout averaging between $140-$180 per order compared with consistent $80 and $60 orders for Facebook and Twitter shoppers, respectively” (Abramovich, 2013). However, Pinterest would be the least effective platform as Pinterest hosts a demographic majority of women. “80% of Pinterest users are female and female users are far more active than male users with 92% of all pins created by women. In fact male use of Pinterest has been consistently declining since July 2011. 13% of pins in July 2011 were made by men, currently that percentage stands at 6%. Conversely, the total activity of female users has grown from 87% to 94% over the past three years” (Ratcliff, 2013). As a result, Pinterest would not be the platform to allocate Axe’s marketing efforts as the social media site would be better suited for brands whose target audience is moms.

 

Another thing to consider when choosing platforms for a business: content vs. conversation. “Content marketing is a marketing technique of creating and distributing valuable, relevant and consistent content to attract and acquire a clearly defined audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action” (CMI, n.d.). When it comes down to it, content without conversation is just advertising. The message is broadcasted to the viewer and the information does not go beyond that point. If a marketer or brand is lucky, the viewer may react to the information that was given. Conversation, on the other hand, is what gives the message its meaning. Let’s use Johnson & Johnson as an example, again. If the company were to post on Facebook:

“A single solution to sensitive skin (link to J&J website here)”  

This post would expose Facebook fans to the new product, but it does not give consumers a reason to embed the message in their conscious, respond, “like”, or share the post with others. However, if Johnson & Johnson were to take the same product and use a post such as:

Have you tried our new Johnson & Johnson sensitive baby bath? Take a look here (insert embedded link) and tell us what you think!

This post stirs up the fun. It gives users a chance to respond with their own stories and experiences, exposes potential customers to the new product, and creates dialogue and community with the brand’s following.  

Before creating content companies should evaluate their marketing plans to understand their goals and target demographics. Any information posted on social media platforms should be engaging and keep users coming back to company pages. Content posted by marketers should stand out from competitors and cater to the consumer. It is important to have a strategy in place to create strong content that will draw the attention of social media users and keep them interested until a brand connection can be established. Quality content is critical for any marketing campaign, and can spark conversation when done correctly. Here are some tips from Carrie Swain on utilizing content:

·         Keep it simple and don’t over think it

·         High quality content is content that others find interesting, engaging, educational or funny.

·         Don’t stop creating, create a content schedule

·         Include SEO from the beginning. Integrating good SEO into your content is a must

·         Engage fans and your audience

·         Create awareness

·         Think outside the box and don’t be afraid to stand out (Swain, 2013).

 

Regardless of how small or large a brand is, it is important to utilize more than one social media outlet to establish the brand on different platforms. It is equally important to choose the correct social media platforms that will attract the target market desired and create a sense of community with the brand and its followers. Content and conversation are also key factors in any marketing effort that utilizes social media sites.

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

Abramovich, G. (2013, May 4). 15 stats retailers should know about pinterest. Retrieved from http://digiday.com/brands/15-stats-retailers-should-know-about-pinterest/

CMI. (n.d.). What is content marketing. Retrieved 2014, November 9 from http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/what-is-content-marketing/

Lyle, C. (2013, July 12). 8 stats every b2c content marketer should know. Retrieved from http://bostinno.streetwise.co/channels/8-stats-every-b2c-content-marketer-should-know/

Ratcliff, C. (2014, May 12). 84% of female pinterest users are still active in their fourth year. Retrieved from https://econsultancy.com/blog/64821-84-of-female-pinterest-users-are-still-active-in-their-fourth-year-stats#i.ns63m0f5hf9zu0

Saito, C. (2013, March 8). Twitter and compete study: how tweets influence b2b tech audiences. Retrieved from https://blog.twitter.com/2013/twitter-and-compete-study-how-tweets-influence-b2b-tech-audiences  

Social Baker. (2013). Photos make up 93 of the most engaging posts on facebook. Retrieved from http://www.socialbakers.com/blog/1749-photos-make-up-93-of-the-most-engaging-posts-on-facebook

Swain, C. (2013, February 3). Content vs conversation in social media. Retrieved from http://www.carrienagy.net/content-vs-conversation-in-social-media/