With social media becoming an increasingly effective PR and marketing tool, incorporating social media into a company’s business plan is no longer an option, but a necessity. Social media is an excellent way to provide information and have conversations with customers. It is a convenient medium to share what is happening with your company, exciting material, and news articles to your customers.
Following are four social media platforms that your business should be leveraging for PR and marketing purposes:
Twitter: With only 140 characters, Twitter is best used for delivering short and simple messages. Think of it as an elevator pitch – you only get a quick burst to engage your followers and entice them to spend more time looking through your feed or website. One particularly beneficial attribute that Twitter offers is convenience. The platform makes it easy for customers to get their simple questions answered in real-time, without the hassle of sending an email or calling into your company. People use Twitter as a way to stay up-to-date with their friends, sports teams, news and companies they find interesting. As a business you are able to share your status, a promotional deal, or a hashtag, to keep your customers caught up with what is happening with your business. If you are lucky, your post might just be the next viral trend!
Facebook: With the ability to share videos, pictures, links and messages without the character limits of Twitter, Facebook is a more versatile form of social media. Because Facebook is multifunctional it makes it easy to keep customers in the loop on upcoming events and company news articles. Facebook is becoming a more visual platform of social media, which has been extremely beneficial for some companies. For example, Buzzfeed’s “Tasty” Facebook page, which only posts videos, has gained over 52 million followers in less than a year. This is only one example of how adaptable Facebook can be for companies.
Instagram: In order to share a message on Instagram you must post a video or image, making it one of the more visual and eye-catching forms of social media. The picture you post can be behind-the-scenes, hinting at an upcoming project or a funny picture that relates to your company and your customers. Use an image to capture users’ attention about exciting new content, an interesting article, poll, competition or accomplishment, and link to more information on the post in the bio. This brings more traffic onto your Instagram page which will hopefully result in more followers and possibly even new customers.
Snapchat: Despite being one of the newer forms of social media, Snapchat has the potential to be one of the most rewarding, especially when trying to reach millennials. Through Snapchat, employees can share photos of the inner workings of their office, giving customers an exciting behind-the-scenes look. There is also an opportunity to hint at upcoming projects, share events, or even just casually interact with your followers. One of the unique qualities that Snapchat brings is the ability to be casual and show a company’s personality. This allows the follower to connect with the company on a more personal note. However, Snapchat is not the best social media platform for all companies; it is most beneficial for companies that are trying to reach the millennial generation.
Understanding your audience and which form of social media best suits your company may be difficult, however, once you find a rhythm, your company will begin to see the benefits of utilizing the platforms. Social media is an excellent way to keep your business top of mind among your target audiences and keep them engaged with your brand. It is also a great way to stay in touch with your customers by being able to answer questions and assist in addressing any concerns they may have. Social media should be incorporated into all companies’ PR and communications efforts because it offers additional exposure, attracts new customers, and engages consumers.