With all of the social media websites available, it can be difficult to determine which are useful for your business. For businesses, websites that promote content communities (such as YouTube), social networking (like Facebook) and blogs or micro-blogs (for example, Twitter or WordPress) can be especially helpful tools in online marketing. This handy guide lists the best social media websites for your company based on your industry.
The Big 5 – Essential for Any Business: Google+, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook & Yelp
- Google+ is especially important because it shows up near the top of a Google search results page and boosts your page ranking. In addition, it charts your business location on Google maps, making it easier for people to find you.
- Facebook is great for networking with people in your community and spreading the word about your business to friends of your fans. Many companies post special offers or coupons to their Facebook page so that their fans will visit the business. You can also use Facebook to listen to comments about your company and respond.
- Twitter posts, or “tweets,†are miniature blogs. With a 140 character limit and a global following, the amount of people your brand name can reach is nearly unlimited. Use Twitter to promote your brand through multiple posts per day.
- LinkedIn is primarily a business-to-business professional networking website. This service mainly serves as a way to network with people in your industry, vendors and to search for job candidates
- Yelp is a location based review service. This site is great for promoting your business to customers in your state, city or zip code.
For the Creative Type: Pinterest, Vine, Instagram, YouTube
- Pinterest is a pin-board style website that allows users to upload and share photographs of things related to their hobbies and interests. This site benefits businesses that produce creative products. Industries such as carpentry, home and garden décor, pet grooming and other services, landscaping, food services, construction and contracting, etc. are all examples of companies that would benefit from using pinterest.
- Instagram is a website that allows users to upload and share photos with the public. This service is fantastic for all of the industries lifted above, photographers, real estate companies, interior designers, painters, etc. This is a great way to showcase your work.
- Vine: Want to create and share a very short video showing a time lapse of when you turned an ordinary backyard into an oasis with a swimming pool? Or maybe you want to quickly show how you carved an ordinary log into an amazing statue using a chainsaw. Vine is a service that lets you edit six second videos to show off your work. This service is great for any company that has occurences of “before and after.â€
- YouTube is the second most popular search engine on the internet. Many companies use this service to post their commercials, video blogs, how-to guides and other media that simply does not fit into a fixed image.
Start Trending as an Expert: WordPress, Blogster, Tumbler, Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon
- WordPress, Blogster and Tumblr allow you to post your blog to the internet without even having your own website. If you do have a website, you can use a service like WordPress to post blogs to your website. Having your blog in its correct category for your industry is also important. Some web services, such as StumbleUpon direct users to different web pages based on the user's interests. For example, a user interested in gardening would be directed to your most recent blog on the best soil in which to grow hydrangeas. Blogs are a way to establish your authority in your industry.
- Digg and Reddit, unlike the blog websites, are compilations of user submitted content from all over the globe. You can join communities of people in your industry and post your blog, repost news articles relevant to your industry, and participate in discussions about your work. The best part is that as other users vote for your posts, those posts move up in the rankings and could be included in the front page of these sites so that people outside of your industry can take notice of your company.
No social media site is a “one size fits all†solution to your business needs. These are all popular social media websites, but there may be even better internet marketing options that will help to grow your company's following online and in person. For a more personalized consultation, contact Cybermark of Arizona today!