Is Pinterest a worthwhile social media outlet for your business or organization? If you sell or produce a tangible product, or if photos and graphics are important to your message, the answer might be "yes."
Virtually all (98%) Pinterest users have tried something new that they saw on the platform, according to the Ahalogy 2014 Pinterest Media Consumption Study.
But is Pinterest the best social media platform for your message? Is it worth the time commitment, even if it does elicit action by your customers/audience? What if you're a sole proprietor or you have a very small staff and limited time to dedicate to social media?
All these questions and more are important in deciding which platforms to pursue. As described by Visual.ly: "So many social media platforms. And so little time. (And manpower. And ideas.) There are costs involved to maintaining a social presence. It's vital for brands/companies/organizations to market on the right platform(s) in order to optimize their resource allocation."
How do you decide on the best platforms for you? Business Insider's research found that, among others:
And this is not a static thing. Social media platforms' functionality and user demographics are constantly changing. For example, Facebook recently changed its algorithms to favor more informational posts, which will affect small businesses with Facebook pages.
Changing strategies and periodic functional adjustments on each platform suggest a best practice of conducting at least an annual review of marketing plans, as the social media world evolves.
How do you decide on the best platforms for you? Business Insider's research found that, among others:
- Facebook still skews young, but older and higher-income demographics are growing. A huge share of Facebook's audience is international.
- Instagram and Pinterest users are predominantly women, although men are increasingly joining.
- Google+ and LinkedIn are the most male-oriented of the major platforms.
- Twitter has a comparatively younger population, and is fairly equally represented across income brackets.
- Tumblr is popular with younger audiences but not as popular with those in higher-income brackets.
And this is not a static thing. Social media platforms' functionality and user demographics are constantly changing. For example, Facebook recently changed its algorithms to favor more informational posts, which will affect small businesses with Facebook pages.
Changing strategies and periodic functional adjustments on each platform suggest a best practice of conducting at least an annual review of marketing plans, as the social media world evolves.
