In addition to our other blog post regarding Linkedin, we thought it would be good to compare it to other social media platforms out there, you may be wondering how LinkedIn holds up compared to everything else. If you’re a LinkedIn user and rely on it as a marketing channel, here’s what you need to know about some other venues.
Instagram. This app is no longer just a place for teenage girls to send selfies to one another. Mark these words: every business that’s serious about leveraging social media as a relationship building tool or sales channel needs to be on Instagram. The reason is simple: Instagram is purely visual. Sure, each image has a brief caption, but the keyword is brief. With extensions like Jumper, you can make it possible for clients and customers to click on the image you’ve posted and buy it right there and then, eliminating all the steps in the sales funnel that have traditionally made clients drop off. Even if you’re selling some sort of service, like home improvement or accounting, you should still have an Instagram channel. The pictures you post can be of your services at work, and if you can’t make that engaging, you should get a social media manager who can.
Pinterest: Pinterest is an amazing platform for those engaged in e-commerce. Pinterest traffic is highly targeted because people are usually browsing Pinterest already with the intention to buy something. However, if you’re selling a service, there may be other venues where your time is better spent. Even though it’s also a visual-heavy platform like Instagram, it’s better to think of Pinterest as a global, digital craft board. People with a specific preference for certain pastimes flock to Pinterest to find others with the same interests. Even so, if your marketing budget allows, it’s good to cover your bases and pay for some Pinterest ads, just to catch some peripheral clients and customers.
Twitter: While Twitter is not such a great e-commerce platform, it is excellent for service-oriented businesses. Whereas Instagram is mostly a visual platform, Twitter is mainly verbal. It’s a great venue for positioning yourself or your business as a “thought leader” and building a good rapport with potential clients through creating a sense of trust in your business capabilities. Because it’s also a more casual venue than LinkedIn, you should also prepare yourself for the fact that some of your content will draw non-business interaction and/or comments.
Facebook: This social media behemoth we left last because it’s pretty much taken for granted that everyone is on it these days. Considered by many to be a great way to communicate with family and friends, In truth, it’s not such a good venue for direct marketing attempts because there is just so much going on, but it is good for running ads. Facebook probably has more info on everyone than any other register of information, so you can create super-targeted ad campaigns that rival Google in their efficiency.
