Getting Started on Social Media: Facing Your Fears

It's the spooky season, and we're going to talk about something that scares some business owners: getting started on social media to showcase their company.

Every business owner knows they have to market their products or services, and with today's digital landscape, the options are truly limitless. However, one of the easiest ways to get started is with social media marketing.

You may wonder where you can even begin. Facebook? X? Instagram? LinkedIn? TikTok? YouTube? What are the differences, and which one will work best for your business?

Let's take a deep breath and proceed to take a deep dive into these various platforms, so you can make the best, most-informed decision for your social media marketing.

Facebook: The grandfather of modern social media, Facebook found life among college students in the early to mid-2000s. One key aspect of the platform allowed you to give your likes for various categories such as Music, Movies, TV, and more. Though these entries were originally manual, Facebook decided to allow musicians, production companies, TV studios, and businesses to create pages that users could like and follow. These pages were especially crucial for small businesses and restaurants because they essentially served as free advertising for sales and weekly specials.

Though Facebook is a little less "cool" these days, users of all ages still access it daily in order to keep up with their friends and families. And aside from Google, Facebook is one of the first places people check for information on a business. So definitely make sure you create a Facebook page as part of your initial strategy.

X: Formerly known (and still known to some) as Twitter, X was originally a status-updater/mini-blog (depending on which co-founder you asked). It soon morphed into a forum for a wide variety of people and opinions that sometimes got heated, but never boring. In terms of how it works for business, it works very well for businesses that are information-driven and want to provoke conversation and drive traffic to their website for further information through blogs and case studies.

Instagram: The biggest photo-sharing app, Instagram came into prominence during the early-to-late 2010s and led to a huge rise in UGC (user-generated content) as people would tag and hashtag their favorite businesses with their photos. For example, a photo could be a selfie with a Starbucks iced caramel macchiato with the hashtag #blessed. Instagram is perfect for retail and restaurants who have very visually-based merchandise. You can also run contests on Instagram that allow you to create custom hashtags in order to keep up with entries.

LinkedIn: Founded by serial entrepreneur Reid Hoffman, LinkedIn represents the most professional platform of this group. If you're on this network, you're hoping to land a job, hire someone, or make a connection. You also have a chance to create an authentic community based around your business and the industry you serve. While there definitely are business-to-consumer (B2C) companies on LinkedIn, business-to-business companies really do well here as your key decision-makers and C-Suite members will surely have profiles. If you're looking to interact with these type of connections and create long-term value at the same time, then LinkedIn is for you.

YouTube: The original viral video platform, YouTube has been around two decades now and has vastly changed how we consume short and long-form content. From goofy videos like "Charlie Bit My Finger" and "What Does The Fox Say?" to courses on AP Chemistry and Forensic Accounting, you can search for practically anything. Businesses have a major opportunity to showcase unique content about their products that can either be educational or entertaining...maybe even a little bit of both. The success of a good YouTube video is to not make it like a commercial because at the end of the day, people on YouTube do not want to be sold to. Like all these other platforms, providing value is key.

TikTok: Definitely the most talked-about social media app these days, TikTok takes YouTube and turns it up to 11. Based on the algorithm of a user, the content comes to them one video at a time, and if you don't get their attention in the first three seconds, they're on to the next one. However, businesses have plenty of opportunity to get in front of new audiences every day with engaging content and visually appealing products. Be ready to put in the effort though as it can take some time to gain traction.

So which one is best for your business? You can parse again through the descriptions above or choose a few to experiment with. Some social media professionals say you have to be everywhere, but as is the case for most things, you don't want to spread your efforts too thin.

The key is just to get started, maintain consistency (three posts per week minimum), measure your results, and be willing to adjust your strategy when necessary.

TunedIn Digital Marketing would love to help you get started on a social media strategy for your business. Contact us today for more information!

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