Understanding social media as a marketing tool

Thanks to the popularity and prevalence of social media, it has become a hugely influential factor when it comes to whether or not people decide to do business with a company.

Providing it has been executed properly, social media can be a highly effective marketing tool. With so many companies trying to attract the attention of its users however, the key is to stand out by offering people exactly what they want.

The latest figures from statista.com have revealed the leading reasons why people in the UK interact with companies on Facebook and Twitter:

• The most popular reason for following a business across both platforms is to receive offers and take part in competitions (68% for Twitter and 69% for Facebook)
• 68% of Twitter users and 62% of Facebook users want to be kept up to date with the latest news about a company
• 63% of Twitter users and 48% of Facebook users want to receive information related to their personal interests via social media
• 34% of users across both platforms follow companies because they have an interest in them or want to show their loyalty
• 24% of Twitter users and 31% of Facebook users will follow a company because they like the content they post

There are a number of options to choose from when it comes to social media so it can be difficult to decide which is the most appropriate medium for your business. The trick here is to find out where your target audience is – are they more likely to be tweeting about breaking news events on Twitter or are they dedicated to posting photos on Instagram?

Perfecting your social media presence and campaigns takes time and dedication. If you don’t have the capacity for this, a digital marketing agency can help. As well as coming up with engaging content for your pages, they can also establish which platforms are going to yield the best results.

Facebook

Globally, Facebook remains the number one social media platform. With 1.5 billion monthly active users, there quite possibly is no better way to reach your target audience.

It’s incredibly important to note however that Facebook’s organic post views are falling. This means that if a company wants to exploit Facebook as a marketing channel, they need to commit to paid promotion.

Whilst this does involve an additional cost, Facebook’s advertising features are getting more and more sophisticated which means that when done correctly, it’s money well spent.

The popular photo sharing site, Instagram has 14 million monthly active users in the UK alone.

Instagram

The likelihood of your success on Instagram is very much going to depend on the type of business you run however. The site has a much younger audience compared to other platforms. 39% of its users are aged between 16-24 which means that if you’re targeting an older clientele, it may not be appropriate. 64% of Instagram users are female so if you’re aiming to appeal to young women, this could be the site for you.

The likelihood of your success on Instagram is very much going to depend on the type of business you run however. The site has a much younger audience compared to other platforms. 39% of its users are aged between 16-24 which means that if you’re targeting an older clientele, it may not be appropriate. 64% of Instagram users are female so if you’re aiming to appeal to young women, this could be the site for you.

Twitter

Twitter has been quiet about their user numbers in recent years with the most up-to-date figures coming from 2013. More recent estimated numbers suggest that Twitter has nearly 12.5 million users, which is a drop compared to previous years.

It’s thought that the site could be a victim of Instagram’s growing popularity but because not all businesses are lucky enough to work in a sector that provides lots of attractive visuals, Twitter is seen as less challenging by many. Twitter is also a fantastic news source so is great for companies that stay on top of all the breaking stories.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn’s growth continues to accelerate and the site now has 19 million active UK users. More and more companies are recognising the need to have a constructive and useful presence on the site and many are using it for lead generation and a core communications platform for staff, customers and prospects.