In this hurried, get-our-information-out-to-customers digital world we live in today, business owners are under immense pressure to embrace every marketing and communication channel available.
A good starting point is – go where your audience is. Simply put, brands need to be present wherever audiences invest their time and attention. Increasingly, that means social media. Research indicates that 88% of the Middle East online population uses social networking sites daily.[1]
So the million-dollar question is – which is the best social medium for your business? Here are some guidelines to use when you planning the social media mix to achieve your business objectives:
- 1. Facebook – Perfect choice for content marketers
It’s the largest social network and a great platform for making a connection with your customers. So if you’re a B2C company, then Facebook has more potential to be right for you. It offers splendid options such as Facebook stores and the branding of products. You would want to deploy fun, trendy and customer-friendly business ideas instead of irrelevant promotional strategies. It is an ideal choice for content marketing.
Top Tip: Give your Facebook page a purpose. Create regular, unique and high-quality content to give your fans a reason to return.
- 2. Twitter – Highly rated for content based marketing to youth
You can rapidly build a loyal fan following and connect with customers communicating in text-based posts no longer than 140 characters on Twitter. Once recognised as a perfect platform for celebrities, notable figures and multi-national businesses, it is now a perfect place for just about any business or individual to establish thought leadership, start a conversation with influencers and build a strong community.
Top Tip: Leave enough space for people to include “RT@yourusername” to make your content spreadable.
- 3. LinkedIn
Linked In is the most preferred choice of B2B communication. It is rightly the king of business-based social networks. With its strong B2B focus and orientation to the more ‘serious’ crowd, LinkedIn helps you connect with like minds, suppliers and colleagues. It is especially useful if you are trying to reach out to professionals and seeking business opportunities.
Top Tip: Use the “Answers” section to leverage the wisdom of the crowds or showcase your own expert insights.
- 4. YouTube – Reliable option for video-based business promotions
It is the king of video sharing communities. It helps you bring your business to life with footage that informs, educates or entertains by adding value to text content on your website. You can share links to YouTube videos on most social networks – Facebook, Google +, Twitter. Setting up a YouTube channel can bring in dramatic traffic and help greatly with search engine optimization.
Top Tip: Use YouTube to host the videos you embed on your own site. Then create a YouTube channel to extend your reach into the YouTube community.
- 5. Pinterest – Best-fit for imagery-based social marketers
Let’s pictures tell a brand’s story. Pinterest is fun and continues to be a great way to reach women and drive them to your website if that’s your target audience. Powerful and original visual content is a key requirement. Take into account time and costs spent in being successful on Pinterest.
Top Tip: If you have images of products on your site, add a “Pin it” button to enable ease of sharing from Pinterest members.
By Zulekha Huseni
