When it comes to making the most of social media for your business, you’d think it would be largely the same strategy. You’d think you could do X, Y, and Z thing - and then everything would clip along and be dealt with.
Of course, the more you learn about how you use social media for business purposes, the more you realize that’s not the case at all. You soon learn that while we might group all the different services together under the banner of “social media”, they actually have very little in common with one another.
You soon realize that you need a separate strategy for each one. The way that you run your business Twitter is very different to how you run your business Facebook. Your Instagram usage is incomparable to the methods you need to use for Snapchat. There’s no tried-and-tested strategy that will work across all platforms.
Still, when you’ve figured that out… you’re sorted, right? You’re going to be able to use social media to promote and bolster your business, you’ve got all your different strategies set out, and then…
Sorry: There’s Something You Forgot
Apologies for being the bearer of bad news, but, yes, there’s still something you have forgotten. Social media doesn’t just break down into what “works” for each one, you also have to think about what type of customer you’re going to be able to target.
Social Media Age Splits
Let’s take an example. If you’ve got a small business premises that sells recliners and comfy sofas to a target demographic of 50+, then Snapchat geofilters for your store and a hilarious Twitter account isn’t going to be much use to you.
On the flip side, if you’re trying to sell clothing to 18-21 year old women, then Facebook and Pinterest boards aren’t going to be efficient.
Different demographics use different forms of social media. While it’s not wise to ignore entirely the ones that don’t appeal to the demographic you are targeting, you should absolutely be focusing on the platform that’s going to work best for your user base. In those two examples, if you were to flip the options - the geofilters and Twitter for the 18-21 year old women; Facebook and Pinterest for the near-retirees - then you’d have a great strategy.
There are plenty of charts you can consult which make clear the demographics for each social media platform.
It therefore makes sense that you find the platforms that are most likely to appeal to your target demo and focus your efforts on those. That doesn’t mean your work up to this point should be ignored, even if you have been focusing in the wrong area. It never hurts to be good at social media! There’s always the people that will buck the trend, too; the grandmas playing with Snapchat filters and the teenagers looking through Pinterest. So you still have a chance of catching those errant, outside-the-stats users.
However, by doubling down your efforts where it’s most likely to make an impact, your business is going to be in good shape.
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