5 Things To Consider When Choosing a Social Media Platform

Whether you’ve just started your business or been up and running for years, transitioning into social platforms isn’t an easy task. Signing up for every social channel and posting the same content across all platforms will not optimize the time or money you spend on social media. The first step in getting the most out of social media platforms is to narrow down the platforms you want to use. Not all social media will be beneficial for your business, so check out these five things to consider when choosing a social media platform.

Map Out Your Goals

There should be a rhyme and reason behind every channel you use and every piece of content you post. Defining your goals will help you determine which platform is best for reaching those goals, what type of content will work best, your target audience, and everything in between.

A few common objectives of using social media include reaching out to new audiences, increasing brand awareness, and increasing website traffic. You can also learn about your customers’ habits, needs, and wants. Plus, you can improve your customer service and relationships by allowing customers to interact directly with your business.

Research the Platform’s Purpose

Each social media platform has something unique about it that separates it from the others. For example, YouTube specializes in long-form video content, whereas Instagram has image-based content and some short videos. Knowing what each platform does can help you determine where your target audience congregates online.

Find Your Audience

Before creating an account on any social media platform, make sure your audience has a presence on the site. Of course, your entire audience won’t all be on one platform, but you can find the channels your audience visits more frequently.

Customer surveys are great ways to determine what platforms your audience is using. Some social media sites, such as Facebook, can determine your audience on their platform based on the information you provide them with about your target audience.

Find Your Competitors

A good indication of what platforms you should be on is learning where your competitors are. Understanding the competitive landscape of your industry and the common sites your competitors use will help you better understand what type of social media strategy you’ll need.

Create a Content Strategy

The last item on the list of five things you should consider when choosing a social media platform is what content you’d like to create. The type of content you create, such as product videos, white papers, or graphics, will depend on the industry you’re in, and the type of social media platform you use will depend on the content you create.