Which Platform Is Best for Your Social Media Campaign?

July 25, 2018
Anna Hubbel

Which Platform Is Best for Your Social Media Campaign? #digitaladvertising #digitalmarketing #socialmedia
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There are so many ways to advertise these days, so many platforms to advertise on. But just because there are so many options doesn’t mean you should use every single one. Success depends greatly on your business, organization, and campaign goals.

Rather than dive unknowingly into a campaign on each platform to see what works and what doesn’t, you should know what makes each platform different and what each offers in terms of advertising benefits. For example, if you want to reach younger audiences, a campaign on Instagram or Snapchat would work better than a campaign on Facebook or LinkedIn. If you want more ad format options, Facebook has more variety than LinkedIn or Pinterest. As you can see, there are a lot of factors to consider.

Before we talk about which platform is best for you, first consider these questions:

Know your goals or objectives. What do you want to achieve through your social media campaign? More web traffic, engagement, or conversions?
Know your audience and its behaviors. Are you targeting men, women, or both, teenagers, music lovers, or fashionistas?
Know the focus and offering of each social platform. For example, Twitter’s focus is trending topics and real-time news snippets. Instagram and Pinterest, on the other hand, focus primarily on visual, lifestyle, and DIY content. Facebook is more about friends and family, whereas LinkedIn is about networking and career development.
Know your budget. Some social media platforms require a minimum spending budget, so be aware of how your budget compares. You also need to know how much you are able to spend on ad creative because some platforms require more work than others.

Now that we’ve covered the pre-logistics, let’s look at each social media platform to see which aligns best with your goals.

Use Facebook If…

You need to create ads in bulk and frequently A/B test
You want access to a wide array of ad formats, such as Dynamic Ads, Canvas Ads, and Carousel Ads
Your focus is sharing knowledge
Your focus is sharing lifestyle content
You want to promote how-to videos that show your product or service in action
You want extensive audience targeting capabilities
Your primary audience ranges from young to older demographics
Your message is family-oriented

Use Instagram If…

You run an e-commerce business
Your business relies heavily on visuals to sell products or services
Your primary audiences include Millennials and Gen Zs
You want to share company updates
You want to share behind-the-scenes footage
You like the Stories format
You want the targeting capabilities of Facebook
You want to sell products directly through the platform

Use Pinterest If…

You run an e-commerce business
Your target audience is primarily women
Your focus is sharing lifestyle content
You want to use creative and visual inspiration to reach your audience
You want to drive traffic to your website
You want to sell products on the platform
You own a small brand, and you want to reach your audience organically

Use LinkedIn If…

You own a B2B business, and you want to reach industry professionals
Your focus is networking
You’re interested in sharing industry and career development news
You want to target audiences based on job title, industry, or interests
You want to use video ads to increase engagement or drive lead generation

Use Twitter If…

You want to share short-term promotions
You want sales that are timely
You want to share company updates
You’re interested in starting real-time conversations
You plan to stay up-to-date and engage with trending topics
Your focus is customer service
You’re good with hashtags
You want to reach your audience organically

Use Snapchat If…

You run an e-commerce business
You want your business to be perceived as authentic, spontaneous, and silly
Your business relies heavily on visuals to sell products or services
You don’t plan to use much text in your ads
Your primary audiences include Millennials and Gen Zs
You want to share company updates
You want to share behind-the-scenes footage
You like the Stories format
You want to sell products directly through the platform

Which Platform to Choose?

Although social media advertising requires some trial-and-error, you shouldn’t go into it completely blind. Plan the things you need to know and the things you need to try. Be ready to switch to a different platform if something you thought you researched fully doesn’t work out. It’s all a part of the growing process, and as with all processes of this sort, the end result will be worth it.

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