We’re no longer in an age where setting up social media accounts for your business is a choice - it’s a necessity. This stands regardless of the industry within which you operate, or the size of your business. Social media can be a greatly effective platform for many types of small businesses, and although nowhere near as effective as Search Engine Optimisation, social is capable of driving more leads than you might expect. Sure, there are reports that organic reach on certain platforms is all but dead, but that shouldn't put you off. There are still so many opportunities to be had on social media, with new platforms like TikTok where organic growth can be huge, even if you have to spend a few pennies on the various advertising options that are available. The trick lies in picking the social media platforms that make the most sense for your business, its customers, and the market in general. Here are a few simple strategies for finding the social media platforms that will provide a genuine return on your hard work and investment. 
One of the most sensible places to start is your audience. Which social media platforms are they most likely to be found on? Where do they spend their time online when they’re at work or idly browsing their smartphone at night? Finding your audience shouldn’t be difficult. You know your customers, and, if you’ve done your homework, you’ll already have put together some audience personas for marketing purposes. Those marketing personas should provide all the insight you need about your audience. Are they likely to spend hours on Facebook? Or is Twitter where they’re more likely to be searching for advice, solutions, and - yes - products? If you draw a blank at this stage, it might be that you need to invest more of your time into another area such as search engine optimisation (SEO). That doesn't mean you should ignore social media entirely, but a shift of priority and time investment would probably make sense in such instances.
If you’re an accountancy firm, Snapchat, Instagram or TikTok probably won’t make a huge amount of sense as a social media platform. In fact, you would probably be wasting your time. But, LinkedIn? That probably has some value. Selecting the most relevant social media platforms for your business will save you heaps of time. There’s no saying that Instagram couldn’t work for an accountancy firm if you’re creative enough and put a lot of time, money and effort into it, but it’s important to revert back to our first piece of advice.
Social media is largely a pay-to-play world these days. Which means, to get seen and noticed by the right people at scale, you probably need to spend some money on advertising. With this in mind, take some time to review the advertising options offered by each platform and consider how they might benefit you in terms of narrowly targeting the right people. If the targeting options you need don’t exist, it probably isn’t the platform for you.
This is an easy one. Which social media platforms are your competitors currently on? It’s important to remember that they might be wasting time on certain platforms, but you can learn from their mistakes. So, take a look at their engagement rates, and find out how many comments, likes and shares they are receiving on their posts. If you spot a competitor performing particularly well on Twitter, for instance, don’t be envious - get on there yourself!
Social media marketing can be fun and effective when approached strategically, but small businesses often waste time on platforms that simply aren’t relevant for them. Use our advice above, and you’ll find the platforms that will provide a measurable benefit for your overall marketing strategy.
