Picking the Right Social Media Sites

During the past several weeks we've talked to a half dozen companies wanting to be part of our maintenance programs for the unlimited website updates, social media monitoring, and handling their social media for a lot less than a part-time employee. One question that always comes up is which social media outlet(s) should you be on. For some it is just one while others it is more than one. We've created this article to help define which social media outlet is best to choose based on the social media outlets we typically use with our customer's.

Disclaimer: This is a broad overview and your results will "and should" vary. Your business is unique just like each platform. Know who your audience is and where they are as that will give you the best bang for your buck.

Some Statistics to start off on

24% of all adults use two sites
16% of adults are on three sites
8% of adults are on four sites
4% are on five or more sites

Facebook

Best for building a community
58% of adult's online use
70% of adults use daily
Among adult users
- 74% are college graduates
- 71% have some college
- 70% are high-school or less

Best for career and industry insights
23% of adult's online use
13% of adults use daily
LinkedIn user breakdown
- 23% of people 18-29 are years' old
- 31% of people 30-49 are years' old
- 30% of people 50-64 are years' old
- 21% of people 65+ are years' old

Best for highly visual industries and marketing
22% of adult's online use
17% of adults use daily
42% of online women use Pinterest
13% of online men use Pinterest

Instagram

Best for companies with great photography and images
21% of adult's online use
49% of adults use daily
Photographer breakdown
- 55% are between 18-29 years' old
- 28% are between 30-49 years' old
- 11% of people are 50-64 years' old
- 4% of people are 65+ years' old
29% of all online females use Instagram
22% of all online males use Instagram

Twitter

Best for topical and timely conversations that are short and sweet (140 characters or less)
19% of adult's online use
36% of adults use daily
25% usage in live in urban areas
23% usage in live in suburban areas
17% usage in live in rural areas

YouTube

Best for Compelling videos
Over 1 billion online users
Almost 1/3 of all people on the internet use
Every day people watch hundreds of millions of hours on YouTube and generate billions of views
YouTube, and even just YouTube on mobile, reaches more 18-34 and 18-49 year-olds than any cable network in the United States

Meerkat

Best for Live-Stream video from your phone to Twitter followers
120,000 users
78% of members are male
22% of members are female

Periscope

Twitter's app for Live-streaming video from your phone
Over 1 million users
1.85 million daily active users
71% of members are male
29% of members are female

Roughly 9,800 member-driven communities and forums
Approximately 36 million user accounts
88% of visitors go to the site multiple times per day
8% of users are 14-17 years' old
8.5% of users are 18-34 years' old
3.9% of users are 35-54 years' old

Snapchat

Best for captioned videos and photos sent directly to other users that automatically disappear
45% of Snapchat's adult users are between 18 and 24 years' old

Vimeo

Best for video sharing
160 million monthly viewers
35 million registered users
Ability to easily password protect your videos
It's estimated that the majority of its users are serious video creators

Vine

Best for short videos
A Vine video is a 6.5-second-long looping video
Great for showing off a new product, demo a feature, tell a quick story, or share something fun
288% of all Vine's adult users are between 18 and 24 years' old

Conclusion

When deciding what social media sites to align with your website online marketing there is no one-size-fits-all solution. When it comes to building your social media community choose where your audience is and where you see it going. Use the information above as a foundational element for deciding which social media site to choose.

When it comes to building your social media site, maintaining it, and coming up with a strategy JM2 Webdesigners from Northwest Alabama is here to help your business grow. You can reach us at 256-258-8593, email at sales@jm2.bz, or through our online contact form here.