Social Media is a big part of life. With over 3.6 billion people using social media in 2020 and a projected increase in that number to 4.41 billion by 2025¹ it is one of the most popular online activities. Not only does it have a high number of users the amount of time spent on social media, 144 minutes per day on average¹, also accounts for a good portion of our waking hours.

The most popular social media platform is Facebook, followed by Youtube, Whatsapp and Instagram². One of the big growth platforms in recent times is TikTok, which only started in 2018 under its current name (it was the result of a merge of two already established but still relatively new apps)³ but already sits 7th in the list of most popular social media platforms².

Should you use Social Media Platforms for your Business?

So whilst social media platforms are obviously popular why should you utilise them for your business?

1. Increase Brand Awareness

With so many users of social media platforms worldwide you can easily reach out to a vast audience via being active on social media. Posting regularly, with engaging content will increase the amount of eyes on your brand and should lead to more customers. One of the best things about doing this is that it can be done very cheaply, all of the main social media platforms are free to use, then you just have to produce the content (or have someone like All In One Digital do it for you!).

2. Advertise to Specific Demographics

Paid social media adverts are a great way of putting your business in front of a very specific target audience. Some platforms even go further than demographics, with Facebook Ads for example you are able to target not just demographics but also a user’s interests and preferences. Facebook also allows you to target users with ads who have visited certain web pages previously, this kind of targeting of audience can allow you to pick up traffic who is obviously interested in your product but just hasn’t been converted into a sale yet.

3. Brand Reputation/Trust

Many potential customers will now use social media to check the credentials of a company before going through with their purchase. If you aren’t using social media pages straight away you could be losing business! It is also a great place for customers to leave reviews, post pictures of your product or get in contact with you. Be aware though that you may also end up with negative comments which will need addressing so that they don’t spiral out of control into a PR disaster!

4. Generate Business

Social media platforms give you the opportunity to generate business, either through direct sales on the platform (if you are selling physical products customer can now purchase these directly through platforms such as Facebook and Instagram) or by promoting your products and services through posts on the platforms. A survey conducted by Instagram states that 83% of people discovered new products or services through their platform⁴.

How can we help?

If you are interested in finding out how we can help your business harness the power of social media get in [thrive_2step id=’1972′]contact[/thrive_2step] now. Everything from weekly posts to keep your businesses content fresh and up to date, through to paid adverts to expand your brand reach and generate more business. Learn more here.