If you haven’t yet succumbed to the fact that you’ll be needing social media marketing from here forward, well, I hope you have a Plan B for your online survival. The truth is that social media is pervasive now in nearly every facet of online marketing, and while the opportunity is great, so is the challenge.
With so many people congregating on the various social networks, it is important to go where the people are if you want to thrive in this social business environment. These days people look to their social media channels for affirmation and recommendation, and if you aren’t playing, you’re not in the game.
Learn which social media channels you need
There are a few major players that you simply must be on, and few others that might make a lot of sense given your market. The top five social media networks at this writing are Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ and YouTube. The next most important are sites like Pinterest, Tumblr, Instagram, Vine and Snapchat. This seconds tier is more visually oriented, but drives tons of traffic that is very interested in buying.
You’ll want to know each network’s primary demographics so that you can determine whether or not a particular network is right for your business.
How to use social media sites for business
Cultivating audiences for your business through social media can be done far easier and faster than through traditional marketing if you are up to speed on how to make your reach exceed your current influence. This means learning how to get involved, engaged and shared as widely and quickly as you can.
Your business can experience exponential growth if your social media is managed well and allowed to grow. There are a myriad of techniques for doing this, and as you might expect change is a constant.
Here is a great compilation of social media resources that will keep you busy for some time. One of our favorites on this list is the blog Social Media Examiner.
The rewards of a successful social media initiative are many, ranging from large amounts of traffic to building a truly engaged and passionate following. Both of those sound pretty decent to me!
