The platforms outlined on the other pages are among the top for business use in the promo industry right now, but they’re by no means the only options out there. Here’s a rundown of some other noteworthy social media apps and why they may be worth an investment of your time and resources.
The microblogging social network is used by 23% of U.S. adults, according to the Pew Research Center. Known for its 280-character limit, the site has been experimenting with a bundle of new features, including Spaces – a Clubhouse knockoff that enables audio-only chatroom. “Twitter is a great resource for social listening and gauging brand sentiment. You can search mentions and industry terms to see what your target audience is saying about you and discover content opportunities,” says Francesca Nicasio, content marketer at Payment Depot.
Snapchat
The instant messaging app that lets you send media that disappears after being viewed, as well as add funky filters and augmented-reality lenses to photos, is particularly popular with younger users. In fact, 65% of adults under 30 report using the platform, according to Pew. Some of the ways marketers have used the platform include creating Stories (a collection of Snaps posted within a 24-hour period) and creating sponsored lenses.
Clubhouse
The drop-in social audio app was launched for iOS as an invite-only app and quickly garnered buzz during the pandemic as a place where you could listen (and perhaps speak) to a variety of celebrities and experts. Now, the app is available to Android users and no longer requires an invitation. The platform has more than 10 million weekly active users, and more than 300,000 rooms are created daily, according to Clubhouse. But many have declared that the Clubhouse bubble has burst, especially since so many other social media platforms are building audio-only features, and already boast loyal and long-term user bases.
YouTube
The video sharing site is used by 81% of adults in the US, with 54% of users saying they visit the site at least once a day, according to Pew. The platform has also been working to reinvent itself, launching Shorts, a TikTok competitor that lets you record videos of up to 60 seconds on your phone. You can record in 15-second chunks and use in-app tools to edit. “[YouTube is] amazing for website ranking, attracting traffic and diversification. I think more B2B businesses should be using video content to support their copywriting hooks and sales pitches,” says Maya Stern, head of marketing and public relations for Creative Navy, a user experience agency.
This news aggregator and discussion site is used by 18% of U.S. adults, and is almost twice as popular with men as it is with women, according to Pew. There are subreddits for almost any topic and interest group, and the site can be a great place to show off your expertise or just to take a deep dive into what people are talking about. “It’s a top-notch platform for those working in marketing and communication designations to identify various trends,” says Eden Cheng, co-founder of PeopleFinderFree.
Twitch
Originally a place for hardcore gamers to livestream their favorite pastime, Twitch expanded into a lifestyle streaming platform during the pandemic. In July, hours watched on the service was up 23% year over year, and a lot of the growth was due to non-gaming activity, according to a recent report by StreamElements. The platform has been used to host public events and meetings, according to Paige Arnof-Fenn of Mavens & Moguls. “The social platform has gained popularity due to its unpredictable, live and neat audience-oriented features,” Cheng says.
Quora
This social question-and-answer website has 300 million monthly active users. Posting a good answer on Quora can potentially generate over 1 million views and lots of engagement, according to Siteefy. Quora gives you “the chance to showcase your expertise,” says Mark Verwoert, founder and social media marketer at the Mark’d Agency. “Users will post questions, and if you adequately answer them, then you will get noticed.”
5 Tips for Creating a Social Media Calendar
Once you’ve figured out where your audience is and determined which social media platforms you’ll focus your efforts on, it’s time to develop your content strategy. How often will you be posting? What kind of content will you be focused on? Here are few tips to help you get started.
1
Invest In a Social Media Scheduler
There are plenty to choose from, all with different price structures and feature sets. Do some comparison research to determine which will best suit your needs. Some of the most popular schedulers include Buffer, Later, Hootsuite, Agorapulse and SproutSocial. “Content marketing can use up a lot of time and resources, so it’s a good idea to look into automating as much of the process as possible without reducing the effectiveness of the content,” says Francesca Nicasio of Payment Depot.
2
Create a Mix of Content
Don’t just post the same old things in the same old ways. Try to intersperse videos, infographics, photos and text-based posts. Some popular posts for B2B accounts include holidays, new products/services, behind the scenes, client testimonials, quotes and contest/giveaways, according to Melissa Newman, ASI’s social media manager. Download a free holiday guide here to help you generate post ideas.
3
Save Up Evergreen Posts
Don’t launch a new social media account for your business without having a bank of posts stored up and ready to go. That will take the pressure off in the moment, while still allowing you to be consistent with your posting schedule.
4
Start Small, But Be Consistent
If you try to do too much at once you’ll get overwhelmed. Consider choosing just one social media platform to join and focusing on building up your audience there. Or, if you’re on several, be sure you’re posting at least a few times a week on each. “You can’t post all week on Instagram, and then post all the next week on Facebook,” says Sisson of Zen Media. “It’s better to post less frequently on all platforms every week than to focus on only one or two platforms per week.”
5
Consider Letting Go of the Calendar
Verwoert of the Mark’d Agency says he’s been steering his clients away from the idea of content calendars because he believes they hurt the quality of content. Even if you’re not willing to go that far, don’t be a slave to the calendar. “It’s better to focus on the quality and disregard the schedule,” he says, “instead of posting mediocre content that’s already available.”