My love for social media has grown substantially since starting my blog. The whole concept of marketing yourself and growing your business via social media is amazing to me. So, let’s get started going over what social media you need and what you don’t…
Pros: I think the world would agree when I say Instagram is the fastest growing and most relevant social media platform to be a part of if you want to grow your business/brand. The human race is visual and technology is getting faster and faster. Instagram is all that and more. There are some “online influencers” that don’t even have an email and thousands of followers on Instagram. It’s safe to say Insta #nailedit.
Cons: You can’t have active links in your captions on Instagram, so this prevents a decent amount of traffic from leaving the app to, say, your website or blog. Also, because our society is so visual based, it’s hard to get anyone to actually read your captions if you have something to say. Your best bet is to express that as best you can in your pictures.
Pros: Facebook is AMAZING for online marketing, promotion, selling a product, etc. I also find you can get more authentic engagement versus other platforms like Instagram. If your target market is for an “older” crowd {mid 20s-50s} then Facebook is perfect.
Cons: Facebook is great, but it’s falling slightly off the grid in the game of social media. Also, all that great online marketing stuff comes at a price, literally you have to pay if you want your Fan Page posts to actually reach all your fans.
Pros: Great way to have your brand shared if you do it in a creative and aesthetically pleasing way. With just a click of a button your picture can be instantly shared to thousands of people who can then share it the same way. Lots of bloggers have utilized this platform, but again it seems the hotter platform is Instagram since your stuff can still be shared by using a simple #hashtag.
Cons: Like Facebook, I feel Pinterest is falling off the grid. There’s only so many outfits, weddings, DIYs, and recipes you can see before it gets old and content starts repeating itself.
♡ Tumblr
Pros: You can gain a substantial amount of followers if you’re lucky enough to be their source of inspiration. Tumblr is similar to Pinterest and Instagram in that sense. Brands like Topshop use Tumblr for the company’s blog.
Cons: Tumblr is definitely on the chopping block to end soon because of the likes of Pinterest and Instagram. I really don’t see a need for Tumblr except for the fact it’s easy to set up and straight forward.
♡ Snapchat
Pros: Viewers’ attention spans are long enough to watch the maximum 10 second video limit. Anyone can follow you and you can promote your stuff to the world in 10 seconds or less.
Cons: Snapchat is time sensitive so not all of your followers will see all your snaps, {username: iambrittgrace}. If you miss a snap and it’s added to an already “long” story, you could end up watching 206 second videos aka 3 minutes, which is equivalent to a YouTube video.
♡ Periscope
Pros: You can connect, watch, and engage with anyone in the world at any time! Periscope is amazing and I’m obsessed. You can host live Q&As which is what I do every Wednesday at 8pm EST, my username is notanotherblonde.
Cons: Videos are time sensitive like Snapchat and only last a day or so. The loading time can be delayed as well.
Pros: You can share bits of your written work and have it presented to a multitude of people for it to be shared. Mastin Kipp’s The Daily Love exploded since being discovered by Kim Kardashian this way.
Cons: You’re limited to 140 characters. I also feel Twitter is slowly fizzling out.
♡ YouTube
Pros: YouTube has great sponsorship opportunities and it gives your readers a more personal connection to you since they’re actually seeing and hearing you in the flesh. I personally love YouTube videos, they’re like little informative movies.
Cons: Due to apps like Snapchat and Periscope, people’s attention span is running thin and those 5 minute YouTube videos that were once so short are now too long.
♡ Bloglovin’
Pros: Great way to discover and share blog content. Bloglovin’ is strictly for bloggers, {duh}, and it’s a great way to network.
Cons: Bloglovin’ is one of the first blogging networks to come out and is since no longer necessary to develop yourself as a blogger.
Pros: You can get a job, published, signed, connected with very powerful people on LinkedIn. You can even have people endorse you for specific skills like marketing. The more endorsements the more credible of a source you are, which is appealing to potential employers.
Cons: You may have to edit yourself and keep your profile strictly professional. Sometimes being too authentic will actually cost you a job.
♡ Lookbook
Pros: Amazing place to see all types of unique style from around the world. Another great way to network. Lookbook incorporates men’s fashion too, which is pretty cool.
Cons: You can essentially do the same thing via Instagram. It’s hard to get people to sign up if they aren’t already a member, {I don’t even have one}.
♡ Chictopia
Pros: A chic-er, newer version of Lookbook. You can “heart” looks and connect with stylish girls all around the world.
Cons: Similar to Lookbook and again how many places can you post your #OOTD before getting exhausted? I find it much easier to tag and #hashtag Chictopia for a chance to be featured.
Overall analysis:
From the Russian proverb ponder this… “If you chase two rabbits, you will not catch either one”.
I liveeee by this quote. The worst mistake you can make is signing up for every social media platform because you will end up overwhelmed and exhausted trying to keep up with all of them. Instead, ask yourself these questions first:
♡ What’s my target market?
♡ What do I enjoy creating/doing?
♡ What’s popular right now?
The winners aka what you should be using, but not all necessary:
#1 Instagram
#2 Snapchat
#3 Periscope (it’ll blow up, mark my words)
#4 Facebook & YouTube
#5 LinkedIn (because you just never know)
I’m excited to start another blog series!
Here’s what you can expect in the weeks to come:
Week 1 (this week): What You Need & What You Don’t
Week 2: How to Grow Your Instagram Followers
Week 3: How to Use Periscope to Build Your Brand
Week 4: Facebook Marketing that Makes You Money
Week 5: How to Create a Social Media Schedule that Works
Questions? Comment below or email me brittany@notanotherblonde.com.
xx
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