Which Platforms Should You Be On?

Apr 18

Last week, I talked about the importance of not showing up on every single social media platform. If you haven’t already, I suggest reading that post first.

Okay, if you don’t have to be on every platform, which ones do you choose?

You want to pick social media outlets that offer two things: Your Target Audience and a Place to Showcase Your Unique Offerings.

Let’s consider the popular options today and look at both their demographics and the type of content they prioritize:

Instagram: slightly more women than men, under the age of 40, prioritizes photos/videos over text.
Facebook: mostly women, over the age of 40, allows text, photos, videos, or some combination of the three.
Twitter: slightly more men than women, under the age of 40, prioritizes text although allows for imagery.
Pinterest: predominantly women, all ages, photo heavy.
LinkedIn: slightly more men than women, all ages, make more than $75k a year, prioritizes text and link sharing.
Snapchat: slightly more women than men, under the age of 30, photo only
YouTube: slightly more men than women, all ages, all demographics, video content
TikTok: more women than men, under the age of 30, video content

Sidenote: If you’re a stat nerd, this report from the Pew Research Center will give you the full breakdown of the common social media platforms by a variety of categories - male and female, education level, income level, etc.

From just glancing at this info, it should be clear that not every platform is the place to find YOUR people.

Let me explain with a couple of examples:

You run a neighborhood grade school. This means your clients are mostly Millennials (those who are between 40 and 25 years old). Instagram is where they tend to congregate the most, with some of the older Millennials on Facebook. These platforms also let you showcase pictures from the classroom, as well as some thoughtful text or information you need to communicate. You should absolutely be on those platforms. But you don’t need to be on Snapchat or TikTok.

You own an art studio with classes offered during the workday. Your clients are mostly stay-at-home moms or retirees. Again, the moms are mostly Millennials so Instagram is key. Plus you have beautiful art to showcase - which is great for the Gram. But you also appeal to an older set of clientele who tend to spend their time on Facebook. Those platforms will be key.
You own an art studio that offers online tutorials. Your content and people are best fit for Pinterest and YouTube, and not for Twitter or LinkedIn.
You provide business coaching services to driven professionals looking to advance their corporate careers. LinkedIn and Twitter would be a great place to establish your voice and create a network, while Pinterest or Instagram aren’t likely to bring you traction.

Take a moment and do a little inventory of the platforms you’re currently on! Are they serving your business in the best, most effective way possible? Or are you talking to an audience that isn’t yours?

This might be the time to adjust or pivot your social media strategy. (Not sure how to do that? I’m happy to help you navigate that or think through your options to find the best platforms for you. Book a Discovery Call today.)

It’s still too many platforms!

If your new list of right fit platforms is too much at this point in your business - no worries!

This might be an unpopular opinion, but pick the two or three platforms from that list that you actually LOVE and pour yourself into that! Ditch the rest - at least for now. It’s better to be killing it on a few choice platforms than to be stretching yourself thin and dreading every interaction.

After you’ve chosen your platforms, the last step is to tailor your content to suit each platform (we’ll talk more about that next week)!