How To Choose Which Social Network Is Right For Your Business
I’ve been helping businesses with their online branding and marketing for over 10 years now, and I’m here to help you decide what social networks are right for your business. Fair warning, if you aren’t willing to put in daily effort, you’re probably not going to like the answer.
Are you still reading? Cool. Here goes…
You should create an account for EVERY social network. Why?
o To control your brand name. I hope you post on every network occasionally but if not, at least you will have control of accounts with your brand name. For example, if my brand name is Baumer Speaking and someone takes the Twitter handle @BaumerSpeaking and uses it to start a cult, I am in trouble. Grabbing your brand name on all networks is a defensive move that costs you $0.
o To stay active and relevant. Have you ever checked out a company Facebook page and their last post is about the 2014 Ice Bucket Challenge? This sends the signal that you are not active online. Instead of snoozing on your socials, post regularly to show that you are a leader in your field. Engage with your audience without worrying about selling (for now).
The good news is you don’t have to be ‘all in’ on every social network. My motto is work medium, play medium and my social media methods follow that sentiment. My recommended strategy is to create (at least) daily content on your ‘primary’ network, then repurpose that content across other networks. Follow these steps to get started!
1. Pick one network to be your ‘primary’ spot and set up your account. Here are some tips to guide your choice:
o Determine where your target audience hangs out. For example, LinkedIn is my top choice for business to business (B2B) operations
o Consider what content you have already created and/or what kind of content you would like to make. If you’re just starting out on social media with your business, Facebook works well as a hub because it can handle many different types of content.
o Ask yourself what network fits best with your business. If you have a physical product that photographs well, or you have event or photography services, photo-friendly Instagram might work best as your hub.
2. Set up accounts and have a presence on all other social networks listed.
Keep an open mind here. Yes, TikTok skews toward younger users, but the organic reach is huge. In Q1 2020, the Tiktok app hit 2 billion downloads. This means TikTok had the best quarter for any app ever. Big growth numbers around downloads means people are hungry for content, and there can be huge organic reach. Organic reach in non-nerd terms is FREE eyeballs. Download TikTok and play around on it. I’ve found cool content from therapists, doctors, life couches, dog trainers… you’d be surprised what businesses work well on TikTok. Give it a try!
3. Dedicate time each week to creating and scheduling content for your primary network.
Many business owners have the misconception that they need to log on to social networks multiple times a day. Not so! There are tons of scheduling tools out there, some that even work across multiple networks. I recommend Hootsuite. Their free version covers everything I need for most small businesses.
Here are some types of content you can create:
o Blog posts that “live” on your website. They can also die on your website if you do not share them! This is another reason why social networks are crucial. They help get the word out about new content on your website.
o Short text posts. If a blog post is a joke about a priest and a rabbi walking into a bar, a short text post is a one-liner joke (a la Mitch Hepburn RIP). If you’re good at short, quick tips/jokes, Twitter might be for you.
o Videos. These should live on your YouTube Channel, and then you share the YouTube link on other networks. Conversely, upload the videos directly to TikTok with some network-friendly edits.
o Images. Beautiful images work well across ALL networks. Even if you aren’t uploading an original photo, try including relevant stock images with your post. I use PicMonkey to get stock photos and make simple graphics. On the other hand, a great caption can make an image come to life.
4. While you’re scheduling for your primary network, also schedule for your secondary networks.
o This is when you will repurpose your content! For example:
Take a casual Facebook post and make it more professional for LinkedIn
Shorten and add some hashtags to a Facebook post and reuse on Twitter
Take a longer YouTube video and upload a clip to TikTok with some effects and stickers
Take a blog post that has 10 tips and create 10 tweets
For more ideas on how to repurpose content, check this post from Gary V. Gary is a fantastic resource for anyone with an online business. The strategies I’ve tested out in the past 10 years are often inspired by his advice.
o A big caveat - DO NOT simply take your Facebook post and send it to LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. Sharing like this will cause users on Twitter, for example, to get sent to Facebook when they click on a link. They hate that.
I hope you enjoyed this post and walk away with some useful tips. Remember, in our digital world, all businesses are online businesses. I’d be happy to answer any questions about boosting your online presence, so please comment or shoot me a message in the contact form! Or you can always find me on all of the socials, but mostly on my primary social network!