Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and more are among the most popular social media sites that are currently used by almost every business and site owner to get access to a huge user base. But did you know there are other social media sites and platforms that have millions and billions of active users that you can include in your social media marketing strategy?
If you are looking to know more about different social media sites that can help your business and product to reach millions and billions of people then make sure you stick till the end of this article. We are going to highlight more than 14+ popular social media sites that you must be using in 2020.
Before we move ahead with further explanation let me give you a brief introduction of who we are? SFWP Experts is a highly experienced and award-winning website design and digital marketing company with more than 12 years of experience in creating and delivering conversion-centric and revenue-generating websites for different businesses.
Table of Content:
- An overview of the importance of social media sites
- Why Is it important for businesses to use social media sites?
- 10 Best Social Media Platform That You Should Be Using in 2020
- Messenger
- YouTube
- Snapchat
- Tik Tok
- Conclusion
- Frequently Asked Question
An Overview Of The Importance Of Social Media Sites
Whether you are a social media marketer or a marketing manager of a company looking to acquire more leads and customers for your business it’s important to know about various social media sites and platforms. Gone are those days when Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube used to be the only platforms for advertisement.
Well, they are still the most popular and leading social media sites with billions of users but there are other social media sites and platforms that can help to maximize your reach, engage with the right set of customers and most importantly achieve your social media goals. There are multiple social media sites available with a bunch of users demystifying each one of them individually will help you to identify the right platform for your business.
So, if you have decided to make investments in social media platforms then you took the right decision because social media is becoming the best platform for businesses to reach their potential customers. By investment, we are not only focusing on money but also the time and efforts that you will invest to increase the reach and awareness of your brand and product.
Today there are lots of social media platforms available for marketers and each one of them has got the potential to make your social media campaign successful. That’s why it is important to identify the answer to a question like Does the social media site fit your brand image? Is your target audience is using a particular social media site or not? And most importantly Can it bring the value you desire?
Keeping that in mind we are going to highlight some of the popular and important social media platforms that you can use in 2020. Most of them will sound familiar to you but when it comes to using the platform your social media marketing strategy might include very few of them.
So it’s worth reading and identifying the working and some of the important statistics about different social media sites so that you can leverage their features to grow your business. But first, let’s understand why social media is a must to include a strategy for your business.
Why Is it important for businesses to use social media sites?
Today more than 50% of the world population uses social media and more than 54% of social browsers use social media to research products and services. These statistics can offer you a good idea about the benefits of using social media for your business. Social media users are continuously growing. That’s why it is said that businesses that are not active on social media platforms are losing potential customers to their competitors.
Social media is not limited to increasing awareness but if your content is engaging then the user will not hesitate to visit your website to know more about your product, services, and business functioning. Today more than 81% of the US population has at least one social media account so there are high chances that your potential customer might be using any one of the social media sites or platforms.
If you think your product and services are attractive and can help users in some way then make sure you have a social media marketing strategy for your business. Because users are continuously scrolling social media sites and spending a minimum of 2 – 3 hours a day on different social media platforms. If they come across your product and services that relate to them and sleeve their pain point then there are high chances that users will engage with your post either by liking, commenting, or by performing the desired action.
Today more than 97% of marketers are using social media to reach their potential customers and 78% of the salesperson outsell their peers using social media. So no matter what type of product you are selling and the industry your business falls into there are high chances that your potential customers might be on the social media platform.
Social media sites and platforms can help you in many easy so let’s take a look at some of the benefits of using social media platforms for your business:
- Helps you to increase brand/product awareness among your potential customers
- Allows you to gain user trust by humanizing your brand
- Using social media platform you can engage your existing as well as new customers
- By offering informative and problem-solving content you can establish yourself as a thought leader
- Help you to increase your website traffic
- Using social media platforms you can generate leads for your business
- Social media platforms help you to boost your sales
- You Can promote your website content and another type of content on social media
- If your content is effective and attractive then you can go viral
- Help you to enhance your brand and business reputation
- If something goes wrong with the operation and other functioning then you can communicate it via social media platforms
- Help you to get a detailed idea about engagement
- Learn more about your potential customers
- Allows you to keep a track of your competitors activity
- Using social media advertising you can target a specific group of audience
- Detailed analytics
- And many more
10 Best Social Media Platform That You Should Be Using in 2020
By now you might be aware of the importance of using social media for your business and how it can benefit your business. In the above paragraphs, you might have come across various numbers indicating social media statistics, by looking at those numbers you might have realized that there is some serious money that businesses can make using social media platforms.
Yes, it all comes down to the social media strategy that you are using to grab your prospect’s attention by engaging them with your content. But the platform you select for your business will also play a crucial role in determining the success of your social media strategy. So the question comes as to which social media platform should I use for my business success?
Well, the answer can’t be written in a single line so we have created this article where we are going to highlight some of the popular social media platforms. Selecting the best social media platform varies depending on the business, type of product/services you are offering, the audience you are targeting, and more. Remember different social media platforms have different functions and specialized for different groups.
So before you make your final decision it’s important to understand each platform individually. Below we are going to list some of the popular and widely used social media platforms by different businesses.
1. Facebook
With a huge user-base and the first preference of brand and business facebook always comes top in the list. Today Facebook has 2.701 Billion monthly active users making it one of the most widely used platforms by users and businesses. That is the reason why Facebook is considered the leader in the social media industry. Whether your business is looking to drive traffic, spread awareness, get new leads, and more. Facebook has the full potential to help businesses in any industry to reach their potential customers.
While the Facebook organic reach might be declining but businesses can make use of Facebook advertising to get access to the wide user base and demographics. Compared to other social media platforms, Facebook is considered to have a more advanced advertising platform.
Using Facebook ads businesses can target users depending on their age group, gender, employment, behavior, interest, relation status, and more. Facebook advertising helps businesses to be more specific by targeting a specific group of audiences that can actually convert or take the desired action on your ads.
Many small businesses and enterprise-level businesses are making use of Facebook advertisements to reach their prospects. If you are not doing it then we recommend you to make use of Facebook as it can help you to grow in the competitive marketplace.
If you are looking to know more about Facebook advertising cost then make sure to check our blog on Facebook Advertising: How much facebook Advertising cost
2. Instagram
Next on the list, we have another close partner of Facebook but has equal potential to help the business reach their potential customers. Instagram is one of the most popular and widely used social media platforms with more than 1 billion active monthly users. Being a leading photo-sharing platform, businesses across different industries look to advertise their products and services with a goal to connect with their potential customers.
Instagram was bought by Mark Zuckerberg CEO of Facebook after 18 months of its launch for 1 billion and now Instagram has more than 1 billion active users. Well, it’s not a coincidence because the features and the function offered by the Facebook-owned media sharing platform grabbed many user’s attention and encouraged them to use the platform.
Using Instagram users and businesses get access to share media content like videos stories, photos, and live videos. Recently Instagram launched the IGTV feature for users and guess what it grabbed many users’ attention and now you can find various influencers and businesses making use of the platform to connect with users.
If you think about how Instagram can be beneficial for your business then here is the answer. Instagram became the biggest opportunity for marketers and businesses to target and connect with their potential customers. When it comes to organic reach, Instagram always performs better than Facebook. That is the reason why it is the most widely used platform by all types of businesses ranging from small newly started businesses to enterprise-level businesses.
Today more than 67% of the US adults age group between 18 – 29 use Instagram and 89% outside the US. So if you think your potential customers are not on Instagram then we recommend reconstructing your social media marketing strategy. As Instagram is owned by Facebook, businesses get access to an advanced advertising dashboard where they can create ads and target users based on demographics, interests, behavior, and more.
If you have strong and impactful visual content then you can always make use of Instagram over Facebook. So, Instagram is another popular and widely used platform that you can consider for your business and include in your social media marketing strategy.
If you are looking to know more about Instagram advertising cost then make sure to check our blog on Instagram Advertising: How much Instagram Advertising cost
3. Messenger
Messenger is the part of Facebook that is used on mobile devices to exchange messages. It can be downloaded separately from a mobile app and comes with additional features apart from the ones that are mentioned above. Today there are more than 1.3 billion active Messenger users and is expected to grow by 2.4 billion in 2021. In the year 2011 facebook made messenger a stand-alone platform and now it has various features that allow users to exchange messages, see stories, and more.
Today more than 20 million messages are exchanged between businesses and users (monthly). So businesses can make use of messenger to highlight their product and services in front of their prospects. Messenger is part of Facebook so you get access to various advertising features like targeting your audience based on their behavior, interests, demographics, and more.
Facebook also offers an advertising campaign that is specifically developed for Facebook messenger. So here is how business can get benefit from the features, if a user clicks on your ad then they will be redirected to the Facebook message of you business page from there you can start communicating with the person who clicked on the ad by sending follow up messages.
If your goal is to get more leads and connect with more audiences then this can be the best advertising option for your business. Apart from that, you can also set up automated messages in the messenger for your business page so that users don’t have to wait for your agent to reply to your message.
SO using messenger businesses can create chatbots, send the newsletter, communicate with customers, and more. If your social media marketing strategy does not include messenger then we recommend including it in your strategy.
4. Pinterest
Next in the list, we have another popular and widely used social media called “Pinterest” that allows users to share or PIN visual content. Today Pinterest has more than 355 million active monthly users and in the past 12 months, Pinterest gained 70 million new beginners so from the number we can easily determine that Pinterest is growing, and in the coming years we can expect the number to reach in billion.
Out of 355 million active users, Pinterest has 81% women pinners and among them, 93% of the active pinners visit Pinterest to plan for purchase and 87% of the pinners say that they have successfully purchased something from pioneers. From the numbers, you can easily determine how effective pintrest can be for your business mainly if your business is targeting women.
If you think your business offers more creative and visual content then Pinterest can be the platform that you should consider in your social media marketing strategy. Some of the popular topics searched in the pintrest are lifestyle, interior designing, food recipes, wedding inspirations, and more. So if you think your business falls under this category then we recommend you make use of the platform to reach your potential customers.
Compared to all the above social media platforms Pinterest ads are not advanced but you can make use of it to boost the reach of your post and track its performance. Apart from that organic reach is high on Pinterest. That’s why it’s recommended to include Pinterest in your social media marketing strategy.
5. LinkedIn
If your business is functioning with a B2B model then LinkedIn can be a great platform for your business. With 675 million active monthly users LinkedIn is not just a resume and job search but now it has become and evolved as a professional social media site. In recent years, LinkedIn saw a huge growth in the total number of users mainly after it became a perfect place for individuals to share their knowledge, interact with people working in the same industry, build a strong network, and more.
Now LinkedIn has become a place where industry experts share content, build networks, personal brands, and more. SO if your business is targeting another business then LinkedIn can be the perfect platform to reach your potential audience. LinkedIn Advertising is not as advanced as Facebook mainly in terms of campaign targeting and functions but it allows you to target the right set of audiences that can be crucial for your business.
6. Twitter
Twitter is one of the oldest and most popular social media platforms with more than 330 million monthly active users and 145 million daily active users. Today in total more than 63% of Twitter users are between the age group 35 and 65. Twitter allows users and businesses to post images and videos and text with limited character copy but Twitter is mostly used to convey live updates of messages in the form of tweets and ringing bells and more.
Today on Twitter 34% of the users are female and 66% of the users are male. So you can make use of Twitter to engage your audience as well as your prospects using hashtags. Now you might be wondering what makes Twitter different from other social media sites. Well, Twitter is basically used to emphasize real-time information. Like other social media platforms, Twitter also has a character limitation there in 280 characters in a tweet.
Twitter is the best place for businesses and brands to use social media to connect with their potential customers. You Can also make use of Twitter ads to reach your potential customers. However running ads on Twitter can be a bit costly compared to other social media platforms but it can be used to engage, inform, and connect with existing as well as potential customers.
7. YouTube
YouTube is one of the popular video-sharing platforms with more than 2 Billion monthly active users. It is considered the second most popular social media platform where more than 90% of the US internet users aged between 18 – 44 have access to the platform. Today YouTube is not only used for entertainment purposes but many users across the world make use of YouTube to learn new things. YouTube gets more than 30 million daily active users.
Same like other social media platforms you can make use of YouTube to share visual content and grab your potential customer’s attention. You can build a huge subscriber base by sharing attractive and educational content. To Get started with YouTube you can create a channel for your business and upload and promote your content.
YouTube is owned by Google and also called the second largest search engine after google. Using YouTube ads you get access to the Google advertising platform that can help you to create and run ads. The organic reach is also high on YouTube by including keywords in the title description and more you can optimize your video and rank it on the top. Apart from that, you can make use of it to advertise your product and increase brand awareness.
8. Snapchat
Snapchat is a popular social media app with 255 million monthly app users. You can use the platform to share images, live stories, short videos, and more with your friends. Today, 30% of the internet users aged between 26-35 make use of Snapchat, and 18% of the internet users aged between 36-45 use Snapchat among them 61% of Snapchat users are female and 38% of the users are male.
If your business is targeting younger demographics then Snapchat can be the best place to advertise your product. Same like Instagram you can create stories, share them with your friends, and save the stories for the future. Today Snapchat has more than 10 million daily video users. So you can make use of Snapchat advertising to make your product and services ad appear in the discovery section of Snapchat.
9. Tik Tok
Next on the list, we have another popular video-sharing app with more than 500 million monthly app users. It is considered one of the social media platforms that rapidly grabbed user attention and grew in the competitive marketplace. Today 41% of the TikTok users are aged between 16 and 24 among them 56% of them are male and 44% are female. Same as Snapchat if you think your potential audience has younger demographics then you can make use of Tik Tok to spread awareness about your brand and business.
It might be surprising but Tik Tok launched after Twitter, Linked In Snapchat, and more but surpassed them by getting a maximum number of followers and more than 1.2 billion users worldwide. But when it comes to advertising we still think it has a long way to go. Businesses can make use of influencers to advertise their product because the content they create grabbed many users’ attention and that’s how Tik Tok grew in the competitive marketplace.
10. WeChat
Wechat is another popular platform with one billion active monthly active users. Earlier we chat used to be a messaging app just like WhatsApp and messenger but now with the increase in the number of users, WeChat is being used to shop online, make payments, and more. Today over 50% of WeChat users are aged between 25-35 years and more than 2.5 million companies across the world work with WeChat.
Well we chat is most popular in China and other parts of Asia but from the number, we can tell that it has got a good number of the user base. If your business is targeting a location where Facebook and other social media platforms don’t work then you can make use of WeChat as the alternative.
Conclusion
By now you might be aware of the top social media platforms that you can use for your brand and businesses. There are other popular social media platforms like WeChat, Tumblr, Reddit, and more but when it comes to the business perspective you can make use of above listed social media sites and apps for your business. If you need further help related to social media advertising or creating social media strategy for your business then you can always reach out to our social media experts to help you create a result-driven social media marketing strategy for your business.
Frequently Asked Questions:
1. How social media can help your business?
Well, there are a number of benefits and advantages of using social media sites for your business and brands. Today most of the social media platforms that are popular among the audience have millions and billions of active users. So no matter which industry your business falls into there are high chances that your potential customers might be scrolling the scrolling social media platform.
Using a social media platform you can communicate with your customers and prospects with a goal to establish trust and convert your customers into loyal customers. Not only that but social media is the place where you can tell the prospects and existing customers about your upcoming product, best performing product, and more by creating and offering engaging content. So social media platforms have the full potential to help you and your business to achieve the desired goal.
2. What are the disadvantages of Social media in business?
Social media can benefit the business in many ways but sometimes it can harm business. SO let’s take a look at some of the disadvantages of using social media for business:
- Social media allows you to connect with the user but somewheres it lacks in making an emotional connection
- Your businesses can receive negative feedback which can destroy your reputation and images among your prospects
- Social media offers organic reach but nowadays social media have started to rely more on ads.
- You are open to getting embarrassed for every small mistake you make
- Social media can offer higher reach but somewhere it offers low ROI
- Social media is free but requires a lot of time to build a strong presence (through organic efforts)
- Chances of losing followers if you are not consistent
- Spend a lot of time on your campaign
3. How can I select a social media platform for my business?
Well, determine the best social media platform for your business totally depending on the type of product you are offering and the demographics of existing as well as potential customers. While going through this process you will find all the social media platforms to be best for your business. That’s why it’s important to get a detailed idea about your business requirement. Before selecting any social media platform for your business you can ask yourself
- Who are your potential customers?
- What is your end goal?
- Are you a B2B or B2C or both? (who you are targeting, business or consumer?
- Your target audience demographics and more
4. What are the benefits of using social media sites for your business?
There are multiple benefits of using social media platforms for your website. Below we are going to list some of them:
- Offers Fastest and easier communication
- Helps you to build a strong network and partnership
- Boots organic visibility in front of your potential customers
- Helps you to increase website traffic
- Gain trust and credibility
- Get customer feedback about your brand and product performance
- Impress potential customers
- Track your competitor’s activity
5. What are the top 10 social media sites?
Below is the list of top 10 social media sites that business can use in 2020:
- Messenger
- YouTube
- Snapchat
- Tik Tok