So, since I haven't been into social media all that much, I'm not real familiar with all of the different sites. I know the most popular ones and I can speak on those without sounding too stupid. I would say Facebook is by far the most popular social media outlet for both personal and business use. It originally started for just personal use but savvy business people picked it up quickly as a way to reach out and grow their customer base to prospective clients that may not be using their goods or services. They were going after a relatively new market, since most of the people using Facebook were younger consumers. With the maturation of Facebook, it's now the older generations, (50 yrs old and up), that is the fastest growing segment of Facebook. That is the reason that so many businesses are now finding a need to have a presence on Facebook. the traditional means of marketing are losing their value, such as print advertising. A business has to have a presence on the internet in order to survive and grow. I think we will see an increase of businesses using what was traditionally personal social media and finding a way to work it into their marketing plans. Social sites such as instagram and Twitter are now becoming business used sites as well.
LinkedIn was created as a business site for people to network with their peers and even do some job hunting. Although it is still a primary business site, I feel it is expanding into personal use areas as well. lets face it, all of social media is about establishing and building relationships, whether they are personal or for business. But there is a fine line between building a business relationship with someone and continuing that relationship on a personal level. I think they go hand in hand. I've been hesitant about setting up a LinkedIn account, mainly because I don't want to get a bunch of junk mail from others on the site. I do have to set up an account soon thou, I just hope there is a way for me to filter out all of the crap that may come my way.
I, too, do not use social media often. However, I frequently use the ubiquitous Facebook to view what is happening with my family and select “friends”. It’s hilarious that, in the morning when I wake up, I habitually go to my Facebook and after dinner I routinely view my Facebook. It’s quite addictive. Yes, it’s exploding as a highly popular platform for people of all ages. Businesses would benefit to have a Facebook account to reach as many people as possible to promote their products and services. It’s an excellent marketing tool to take advantage of its reach worldwide to new audiences.
ReplyDeleteA favorite of mine -- Instagram since it’s visual – lots of photos, videos, and candid comments. It’s instant gratification and fun to view. May help a business if the company adds snapshots to showcase their products and services.
Twitter is an excellent choice for a business. Since there are limits to the number or characters, a company is forced to be concise and to the point on why a consumer should use their services or buy their products. It’s also ideal for announcements, milestones, links, and #hashtags.
Since I am not actively using LinkedIn nor completed my profile I assume this platform would be mainly used for professional reasons versus personal connections. My employer has successfully used it as recruiting tool, press releases, and product updates.
It is a fine line of combining the use of a social media platform for both personal and business connections. As a business you want to establish a strong relationship with your customers to get their feedback. I think by the end of this course, we will be more knowledgeable on which platform is best for strictly business or personal or both.