Top 6 Social Media Platforms and How to Use Them
Most of us love social media or at the very least can’t keep ourselves off of it. From keeping up with friends and family to digital advertising, social media has become a part of our daily routines. However, you may be wondering what the top sites are, especially if you’re trying to get into the world of social media marketing. Read on to discover the top social media platforms (in order) and insight on how to use them.
According to Facebook, they have 2.74 billion active users per month. This makes it the number one social media site. Practically everyone and their grandmas are on Facebook these days. The average age of Facebook users is 25-34, and most are male according to Statista. Facebook is not the place for your hashtag strategy, but if you have the budget, it may be worth boosting some of your posts. Facebook might not be as image and video-oriented as Instagram, TikTok, or Pinterest, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use visuals. Posts with an image are actually 10 times more likely to receive engagement than text posts.
Instagram has 1 billion monthly active users. We know Instagram as a photo-sharing platform, but they have recently announced that they want to become more of a video-sharing platform. This puts them in heavy competition with TikTok. I know from personal experimentation that Instagram does give a preference to reels. Every time I post a reel, it gets far greater reach than any images I post. Just make sure you don’t post a reel with TikTok stamps on it. Instagram continues to change its “perfect number” of hashtags on posts but I like to stick to around 10. Always give a healthy mix of branded hashtags (i.e. #marketingbybrienne), hashtags about your target audience, and hashtags that relate to your post or your business. The majority of users on this platform are 25-35 years old and female.
TikTok
TikTok just hit 1 billion monthly active users according to this Forbes article. Most users are between the ages of 10-19, making this the platform with the youngest average user. Most users are male. This social media giant grew rapidly, and for good reason. The TikTok algorithm seems to be a mind reader. To effectively use TikTok, you have to learn just a little bit about video editing, as completely unedited videos (no captions, no transitions, no filters, no music) aren’t usually the ones getting views and engagements. The key to going viral is to say or do something engaging in the first second, hopping on trends, and using popular sounds in your videos. If you want to take your brand to TikTok, I’d get a little humorous where you can. This app is far more casual and entertainment-based than LinkedIn.
Pinterest has 400 million monthly active users. This might not be the first social media site you think of to advertise on, but it could just be your secret weapon. First of all, like the TikTok algorithm, Pinterest is a mind reader. They populate pins that users are already looking for. So if you show up on someone’s page, chances are they’re you’re target audience and they’re looking for you. Pinterest might not be the place to go if you’re trying to become an influencer, but it’s great if you have a blog or eCommerce site to link to. The majority of Pinterest users are females from 25-35. Pinterest takes the cake as my favorite platform for advertising blogs and Etsy stores.
Twitter has 353 million monthly active users. Most Twitter users are 25-35-year-old males, followed by 35-49-year-old males. This is another fun place for hashtags, although I wouldn’t recommend using more than 4. Twitter is quite possibly the hardest platform to get noticed on. You have to Tweet very frequently, I'm talking at least 10 times a day. However, it can be a fun platform for brands to explore a fun and human side. Look at the Wendy’s vs. McDonald's battle happening over Twitter (if you don’t know about it you have to google it).
There are 260 million monthly active users on LinkedIn. This is the business casual platform. It is another platform where you need to keep the hashtags to a minimum if you use them at all (it’s my belief that 1-2 is okay). The majority of users on LinkedIn are 25-35-year-old men. This platform should be used to share industry news, company news, job openings, and industry tips and tricks. This is the “be on your best behavior” social platform. I like to think of it as the office of social media.
