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It is important to choose the right social media platform for your business, especially since the social media landscape is expanding so quickly it can be hard to keep up. Every year new platforms are making waves in the online world. With so many choices it can be an overwhelming task to manage social media and be sure that your time invested equals a noticeable return on that investment.

In 2017, more businesses will narrow their focus to just 2-3 social media channels. Need help choosing which channel to place your efforts?

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Choosing the right social media channel is an easier process when you really know your target audience. Simply put, be where your audience is. Know what sets you apart from your competitors and look for platforms where you can shine.

Every industry has a popular social media channel that dominates. Some basic research of your competitors will help you determine which channels those are. Focus your efforts to stand out against your competitors on those platforms. However, putting some of your efforts into a newer, less populated channel that your audience uses may help establish your authority.

Here’s an overview of the most popular social media channels and what types of industries they serve best.

Facebook

Facebook is a must-have for any type of business. Creating a business page is simple and the ability to share news and events is excellent. However, to attract a substantial amount of attention you will need to invest in a paid ad campaign to share your message. This can be an effective method with Facebook’s detailed targeting abilities and you can track your progress with analytics. The addition of Facebook Live has increased video sharing and changed the way some businesses promote themselves. If your business can use video to teach or inspire, this will be an important aspect to focus on.

Twitter

People use Twitter to stay up-to-date on current events, share information, and connect with people and other businesses. It is popular with journalists, writers, news channels, celebrities, music, and businesses that use it to promote engagement at special events and to network. The use of hashtags helps create a unique subset of tweets that can be targeted for a specific event, trending topic, or theme.

Instagram

Instagram is an excellent channel to reach a younger demographic. It continues to gain in popularity and shows no signs of slowing down. The recent addition of Instagram Stories helps take the customer/user behind-the-scenes to get to know, like, and trust your brand in a deeper way. In a recent article, we reviewed how to use Instagram for your business.

YouTube

YouTube is the 2nd largest search engine and the 3rd most visited website worldwide, behind only Google and Facebook. That makes YouTube a great marketing tool to reach your target audience through Google search. Simple commercial videos, behind-the-scenes clips, instructional videos, product demonstrations, testimonials, interviews, and inspirational music videos are some of the ways you can showcase your business. YouTube is suitable for most businesses, particularly ones that are creative, i.e; restaurants, photographers, education based, fitness, and anything with events like music halls, comedy clubs, and social media.

Pinterest

According to Ahalogy, most of the users on Pinterest are under the age of 40, typically female (although the men are also jumping on board), and have a household income over $100K. Pinterest is popular for health/fitness, home décor, fashion, hair/makeup, photography, bloggers, and social media companies. Pinterest influences customer purchases and can help your business stay up to date on emerging trends. With the addition of buyable pins, your customers can purchase products easily from the Pinterest platform.

Those are just a few of the most popular social media channels that can benefit your business.  We can help you dive deeper into other platforms that would be appropriate for your business.