“Going viral is not an outcome; it’s a happening. Sometimes it happens; sometimes it doesn’t. Just remember, fans are vanity and sales are sanity.” – Lori Taylor
Social media optimization is critical to increasing brand and product awareness. When businesses take the time to optimize social media strategies and effectively connect with customers, the benefits include:
- Improved reach and influence of social media marketing campaigns
- Enhanced quality of business leads generated through social media
- Increased sale of products and services through social media channels.
This blog post will explain the value and purpose of five popular social media platforms used in digital marketing campaigns. Second, we will help you decide which social media platform best reaches your desired target market. Finally, we will provide you with demographic information to enhance your social media optimization strategy.
The Value of Social Media Marketing
“90% trust peers on social networks (even strangers); only 15–18% trust brands.” –Danny Brown
Social media networks are open to everyone allowing businesses opportunities to follow their consumers’ activities. This helps to inform marketers about their target audiences, likes, dislikes, and interests so that they can tailor marketing strategies to align with consumer motives and interests.
- 82% of marketers say they repurpose content across social media channels. (HubSpot, 2022)
- 77% of social media marketers say social media marketing has been somewhat to very effective.
- 64% of marketers say they invest in building social media communities.
Social media marketing is one of the most effective ways to promote and sell products & services. Social media platforms facilitate the hyper-targeting of perspective clients based on specific demographics.
Why is the target audience important in social media marketing?
Identifying a target market is particularly important in social media marketing. Focusing on specific target groups allows you to optimize the use of your marketing resources.
- 84% of marketers target Millennials as part of their social media strategy.(HubSpot, 2022)
- 25% of respondents said they believe funny content is most effective with Gen Z.
Knowing who the target audience is ensures that ads reach the right people and achieve the desired impact. In digital marketing or in social media advertising campaigns, the target market is a group of potential customers sharing similar characteristics that a company intends to serve with their products and services.
Social media platforms appeal to particular group users, so choosing the correct social media platform is vital.
The importance of Social Media Influencers
Social media influencers are individuals who have established credibility in a specific industry and have access to a vast audience.
- 68% of marketers’ companies work with influencers on social media (HubSpot, 2022)
The market grew from $1.7 billion in 2016 to $9.7 billion in 2020. In 2021, it soared to $13.8 billion, indicating a steady growth. This year, the market is projected to expand to a whopping $16.4 billion industry.
These influencers can persuade their followers and others to act based on their recommendations. The role of influencer marketing is fast evolving to become an effective marketing tool.
What does Search Engine Optimization (SEO) mean?
Search engine optimization (SEO) is a process or method aimed at improving the ranking of a website in search engine listings and is considered a subset of Internet or Web marketing. The main purpose of SEO is to get higher rankings on search engines, creating a larger target audience.
Note: Search engine optimization is critical to your digital marketing strategy. However, SEO goes beyond the scope of this blog. Instead, this article focuses on social media strategy, marketing, and optimization.
What is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing, also known as online marketing, refers to advertising delivered through digital channels to promote brands and connect potential customers using the internet and other forms of digital communication.
Private versus Public Social Media Accounts
- Public social media accounts are platforms where people can access and share a lot of personal information. Social media sites or channels can share items in a public environment.
- Private social media accounts: are intended for a single person or a group of immediate people. Private channels range in a few private messaging platforms. Social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook allow users to make their accounts public or private. Private accounts enable the user to control who may or may not view their content.
What is Social Media Analytics?
Social media analytics is collecting and analyzing market data shared on various social media platforms, social posts, social networks, etc., to improve an organization’s strategic business decisions. (aka, social media metrics)
I) What is Instagram?
Instagram is a leading picture-based social media platform. However, it does more than keep you updated on friends and family. Influencers and small businesses use Instagram to connect and engage with their target audience and boost sales.
How is Instagram used in Business?
Instagram has the potential to be an effective marketing tool with several business features when a user sets up a business or creator account. For instance, Instagram business tools include such features as:
- adding user contact information,
- viewing insights about posts and followers
- promoting posts from within the Instagram app
- shopping options
Note: These features assist with creating social media content tailored to the brand and business needs.
Which demographics use Instagram?
- 48% of Instagram users are female (Omnicor, 2021)
- 52% of Instagram users are male.
- 31% of Instagram users are 25-34-year-olds.
- 31% of Instagram users are 18-24 years old.
- 87% of Instagram users are outside the U.S.
- 73% of U.S. teens say Instagram is the best way for brands to reach them about new products or promotions.
- Instagram users spent an average of 30 minutes per day on the platform in 2021.
- 25% of U.S. teenagers say Instagram is their preferred social media platform.
II) What is the purpose of YouTube?
YouTube is a video-sharing service where users can watch, like, share, comment, and upload videos. YouTube is accessible on P.C.s, laptops, tablets, and mobile phones.
How is YouTube used in Business?
Businesses that use Youtube channels or ads can reach another user’s audience by creating and advertising on other people’s videos. YouTube is the second largest search engine and the third most visited website in the world.
Businesses can use YouTube to address customer questions, promote brands, portray certain aspects of daily life, and much more. As a result, the reach, engagement opportunity, and sales conversion potential are high.
Which demographics watch YouTube?
According to the U.S. internet population statistics:
- 46% of YouTube users are female
- 54% of YouTube users are male
- 81% of persons 18-25 years old watch YouTube
- 71% of persons 26-35 years old watch YouTube
- 67% of persons 36-34 years old watch YouTube
- 66% of persons 46-55 years old watch YouTube
- YouTube reaches more U.S. adults ages 18-34 than any cable network. (Pew Research, 2020).
- 1 in 3 baby boomers go on YouTube to learn more about a product or Service.
- 80% of U.S. parents of children under 11 years old claimed that their kids watch YouTube (Pew Research, 2020).
- YouTube reports on its usage for those between 16 and 64 years.
- 70% of YouTube traffic comes from outside the U.S.
YouTube is a popular social media platform for every demographic group, and no wonder – video is the fastest and the most efficient source of information in this day and age.
III) What is the purpose of Facebook?
Facebook is a website that allows users, who sign-up for free profiles, to connect with friends, work colleagues, or people they don’t know online.
Facebook allows users to share pictures, music, videos, and articles, as well as their thoughts and opinions on various topics and with however many people they like.
The primary purpose of Facebook is to help friends and family connect. And the best way to keep in touch with friends and family is by updating them about your life with status updates.
How is Facebook used in Business?
Facebook business pages are public social media profiles designed for commercial use. Similar to a personal Facebook account, business pages allow businesses to connect with potential customers. For example, many brands use Facebook pages to promote products and services through links, status updates, photos, and videos.
Additionally, Facebook Business Page can connect you with customers and offer essential information about your Business, products, services, and upcoming events. Facebook Ads and Messenger Ads are highly targeted and effective ways to reach potential customers.
Which demographic uses Facebook?
Facebook is the most popular social media network for men and women aged 35-44. This demographic has been early adopters of Facebook and continues to use and favor the platform over other Social Media.
- 56% of Facebook users are male (Omnicor, 2021)
- 44% of Facebook users are female.
- The largest demographic group of Facebook users is between 25 and 35.
- 8% of Facebook users are 18-24 years of age.
- 82% of college graduates are on Facebook.
- 75% of online users with more than $75K income are on Facebook.
- 70% of adults in the U.S. use Facebook.
- Seniors aged 65+ are the smallest demographic group on Facebook (4.8%).
Facebook is a platform that caters to a wide variety of people, incorporating many different media aspects, from photos to messenger to text. As a result, it is not as limiting as LinkedIn or Twitter, which typically focus on a specific demographic.
lV) What is the purpose of LinkedIn?
LinkedIn is a social media platform used to build brand awareness and develop consumer relationships. Businesses using LinkedIn can market to potential customers and partners by posting engaging content and participating in industry discussions.
How is Linkedin Used in Business?
LinkedIn is effective for building business connections, generating leads, improving brand awareness, developing business relationships and partnerships, sharing content, and driving traffic to your website. LinkedIn is essential to several successful marketing strategies due to its effectiveness in expanding professional networks.
- LinkedIn pages help businesses recruit top talent.
- LinkedIn facilitates sharing and creating posts relevant to your followers.
- LinkedIn builds sponsored ads to promote brands and products further to followers.
- LinkedIn allows users to develop and showcase Pages to promote products and brands.
Which demographic audience does Linkedin reach?
The U.S. has the most LinkedIn users at 176 million; over 75% of LinkedIn users are from outside of the U.S.
- 57% of LinkedIn users are male (Omnicore, 2021)
- 43% of LinkedIn users are female.
- 37% of U.S. adults who use LinkedIn are between 30 and 49 years old.
- 50% of all U.S. adults with college degrees use LinkedIn.
- 25% of all LinkedIn users are senior-level influencers.
- 28% of LinkedIn users are 18 to 29 years old
- 38% of LinkedIn users are 25 to 34 years old
- 30% of LinkedIn users are 35 to 54 years old
With an estimated 645 million self-reported users, LinkedIn is among the most popular social networks worldwide.
V) What is the purpose of Twitter?
Twitter is a microblogging service for friends, family, and coworkers to communicate and stay connected by exchanging quick, frequent messages. People post Tweets, which may contain photos, videos, links, and text.
Twitter allows users to discover news and events and follow people or organizations that post content they enjoy consuming. In addition, public relations teams (and marketers) use Twitter to increase personal-brand awareness.
How is Twitter useful to Businesses?
Twitter for Business provides a mechanism to share information quickly and start conversations with a target audience. The intended audience can identify Tweets and content valuable to them and, ideally, share the content with followers.
Twitter is “the” social media platform that allows users to build awareness and grow their audience organically and efficiently. Users can share content, interact with their audience, and join relevant conversations.
Which demographic audience does Twitter reach?
Twitter is particularly popular in the United States, where as of January 2022, the microblogging service had an audience reach 76.9 million users.
- 70% of Twitter users are male (Omnicore, 2021)
- 30% of Twitter users are female.
- 46% of Twitter users report using it daily.
- 39% of Twitter’s audience is 25 to 34 years old
- 27% of Twitter users live in urban areas,
- 18% of Twitter users come from rural areas.
- 33% of Twitter have a university education or higher
- 34% of Americans who use Twitter earn $75k+
- 29% earn $30k-$49.999.
Social media optimization and marketing strategies must work congruently to ensure that advertising results are consistent and positive. In brief, once a marketing strategy has established what works for a particular niche, the information is used to scale up the business.
As demonstrated, each social media platform has its unique benefits and specific group of users. For example, if you’re looking to reach a younger demographic, Instagram and YouTube are the way to go. On the other hand, if you want to share longer pieces of content or drive traffic to your website, LinkedIn and Twitter may be more beneficial for your campaign. Ultimately, you must understand who your target market is and which social media platforms they use so that you can optimize your content accordingly.
Thank you for reading our article!
TimeWellScheduled.com is a secure, online time and attendance software that is 100% tailored to meet your scheduling needs! In addition, TimeWellScheduled facilitates employee attendance tracking & payroll tasks and enhances your staff management capabilities. Plus, our Service is free for up to 10 employees!
Click: here to download our (Excel) employee scheduling template; IT’S FREE!
