6 important social media channels

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Nowadays, there's a wide range of different social media platforms available. What options do companies have? We'll show you.

Representation of some social media platforms

Popular social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, and others are used by billions of people worldwide and have become an integral part of our everyday lives. According to a Statista survey from July 2020, approximately 3.6 billion people worldwide use social media, and this number is expected to grow to 4.4 billion by 2025. This trend demonstrates the growing influence of social communication platforms. But how can companies leverage these opportunities? The first step is to gain an overview of the various channels . On the following six social media platforms, you can connect with your target audience cost-effectively, showcase your expertise, and present your brand in the best possible way:

6 popular social media platforms
Facebook logo Facebook
Facebook remains by far the most used social media platform in the world. It is particularly known for its ease of communication with national and international contacts . In addition to images and videos, text messages of unlimited length can be shared with friends, select groups of people, or publicly. In August 2020, around 2.7 billion people worldwide used the well-known social media network. Users include both women and men across all age groups. In Germany, however, the platform has been struggling with kazakhstan phone number data declining user numbers for years , particularly among the very young target group: in 2019, only one in three teenagers was active on Facebook.

Nevertheless, the social network's reach remains very high. Customer-focused industries such as retail, beauty, service , and e-commerce, in particular , serve the platform's diverse target audience and thus receive many likes. Since 2017, Facebook has also placed greater emphasis on optimizing Facebook Groups . Such groups offer the advantage of allowing companies to connect directly with their customers, build trust, and benefit from immediate feedback. Furthermore, Facebook allows ads to be broadcast that are shown exclusively to a defined target audience, thus offering a higher chance of success.

Instagram logo INSTAGRAM
The social media platform Instagram stands for the aesthetic presentation of images and videos. Text can only be added to the description of an image or video. The popular platform is used by approximately 1.1 billion people worldwide (as of July 2020). Instagram seems to be particularly popular with its young target audience: Users under 25 spend more than half an hour on the platform every day. Both genders are equally represented.

A dedicated Instagram channel is suitable for your company if your company services can be presented on your profile using attractive images or videos. The most popular topics on Instagram include beauty, fashion, accessories , and automobiles . You can also upload current stories to your profile to provide regular entertainment. The platform can be used specifically for advertising via influencer marketing . You should match the influencers to your product and target audience in order to achieve a trust-building and low-waste presentation of your product or brand. Furthermore, individual posts can be promoted on your own Instagram profile, which can generate additional followers.

LinkedIn Logo LinkedIn
LinkedIn is an international B2B platform owned by the software company Microsoft. As of August 2020, approximately 706 million people worldwide used the business network. And the number is also growing in German-speaking countries: At the time of writing, over 15 million users from the DACH region were registered.

Because LinkedIn is a business platform, it's particularly well-suited for social selling . The advantage: Unlike Facebook, Instagram, and the like, more company-specific data is available, making it significantly easier to find potential leads. To build long-term relationships on LinkedIn and gain more followers , you should regularly publish helpful content. This could include industry insights, interesting statistics, or posts from opinion leaders . It can also be helpful to join relevant groups. As with other social media channels, you also have the option of placing paid ads on LinkedIn, so-called lead ads.