If we said ‘social
media’ to you – what would you immediately think? Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn?
You’d be
right, these are traditionally known as the ‘big 3’ but there are many other
platforms making nothing short of a meteoric rise in popularity.
Instagram
has reportedly attracted 67 percent of the top
brands in the world – taking it into the ‘big leagues’ of social media
platforms.
With Pinterest also showing rising popularity – 48.7
million users (February 2013 figures) and Google + is quoting a figure of 135
million users whilst You Tube states it gets 800 million users each month.
These figures are just staggering aren’t they?
And do they leave you feeling a bit confused? Wondering
which social media platform is right for you. Well here’s a brief guide to each
of the platforms that we hope will cut through the figures and the hype and get
you comfortable with being ‘social.’
Facebook has an
incredible 1.11 billion active users so it is little surprise that Facebook has
become the most widely recognized name in social media.
Facebook isn’t just about who’s dating who and who’s watching what on
TV!
Facebook for business is highly credible and allows you to create a
business page – a few minutes is all you need – and you can then invite people to
join or like your page. We believe this is a must for any business!
Twitter has 200million monthly active users
worldwide and is regularly referred to in the news – many stories break using
Twitter (did you know the killing of Osama Bin Laden was first reported by a
Tweet?)
There is no
doubt that Twitter has caused a real buzz in the business world – in very
simple terms Twitter is a free micro-blogging service that allows anyone to say
anything to anybody in 140 characters or less!
LinkedIn has around 200million users worldwide and is
said to be the largest network of business professionals in the world.
Very quickly
LinkedIn can provide a host of business people with whom you can network with.
There is
business to be won on LinkedIn, strategic alliances to be made and job
opportunities for anyone looking for a promotion, a new career direction or
just a change!
Here at One
to Three we believe ALL businesses can find their place on Facebook, Twitter
and LinkedIn. ALL businesses have a product or service to sell, hints and tips and
news to share.
Pinterest is a pinboard-style photo sharing website that
allows users to create and manage theme-based image collections such as events,
products, styles, interests and more. Users can browse other pinboards for
inspiration, 're-pin' images from the web / their photo gallery to their own
pinboards, and 'like' photos.
Pinterest is
a fast-growing social media platform – launched in 2010, it’s a relative ‘new
kid on the block.’
Instagram describes itself as “a fast, beautiful and fun
way to share your photos with friends and family.”
Pictures taken on your smart phone or
tablet can be filtered to transform their look – posting a picture to Instagram
allows all of your followers to view and comment on the picture.
Pinterest
and Instagram are particularly important if you are selling a product –
particularly a lifestyle product. You can showcase your goods in an elegant and
visually exciting way on these platforms.
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created in 2005, it allows users to upload, view and share videos. Now this is stating the obvious but YouTube is all about video content – ALL businesses can benefit from having a video made about them. Whether it is a ‘piece to camera’ a product demo, a tour of a facility – video is a powerful marketing tool and an important part of your online presence. Don’t forget YouTube videos can be shared on all of the other platforms above (with the exception of Instagram.)
If you still feel you need a helping hand before you leap in to the world of social media please drop us a line - info@onetothree.co.uk and we'll help to make your social media as easy as 1, 2, 3!!
