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Underestimated social media platforms for your business

Social media is more popular in our society than ever before. Regardless of whether you're a young person or a senior citizen, the number of users is constantly on the rise. According to We Are Social more than 3.5 billion people worldwide were using social networks in mid-2019, including Facebook, YouTube and Instagram in particular.

Active users of the top social media platforms in July 2019

The reasons why social media is so popular around the world and in every age group are as banal as they are frightening.

On the plus side, social networks make it easy to stay in touch with relatives or friends on the other side of the globe, for example. Or exchange information with friends, share news and arrange a date for the next movie night.

Photos and videos communicate our current state of mind almost in real time or - and this is the downside - present us with filters and emoticons as we would like to be. Likes and hearts simulate a digital "pat on the back". It's about a certain recognition that some people miss in real life.

Either way, social media is as much a part of our lives as popcorn is to the movies.

The fact that social media belongs in every company's marketing strategy has long since become common...

But which platforms are suitable for business? And for what?

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The top social media platforms for businesses

The biggest player among social media platforms is still Facebook. 2.8 billion people worldwide used one of Facebook's services (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp) in the third quarter of 2019. About 140 million businesses are currently active on Facebook, as can be read on Allfacebook can be read.

Facebook also clearly leads the ranking list of social media platforms used in companies. 94% of all marketing executives worldwide use the social network in their companies, as the Social Media Examiner published in its annual Industry Report 2019.

Instagram follows in second place on the scale with 73%. LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube are used by every second company worldwide.

Social media platforms used by companies worldwide (January 2019)

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What Facebook & Co. are used for in companies

The figures prove that the social relationship network Facebook is still the front-runner among social media platforms, even though many people - especially the younger generation - keep calling it a dying phenomenon.

Enormous reach, the ability to run targeted ads, and community building via Facebook groups are all good reasons for enterprise use.

If you want to reach a younger target group with your products and services, you might be better served with Instagram. Here, the focus is clearly on photos and videos (Instagram stories).

Twitter enjoys great popularity with 140 million daily active users. Whether sponsored tweets (since August 2019 also with video ads), Twitter Moments, videos, photos or pure text messages - Twitter is an interesting channel for companies that rely on content marketing.

Whether it's a how-to, a product test or entertainment: YouTube is an El Dorado for the lazy reader, for those who prefer to be informed and entertained via moving images rather than text.

And this is exactly what works for companies that, for example, replace a printed instruction manual with a YouTube video, show product tests in a video or implement their company story on film.

LinkedIn and Xing are the best-known professional social networks used primarily in the corporate environment, for example, for business contacts or recruiting. While LinkedIn has established itself internationally with over 330 million registered users, Xing has around 8 million users in German-speaking countries.

But is there an alternative to Facebook & Co. for companies? And if so, which one?

No matter which network you choose, you always need content. Read our content marketing whitepaper to learn how to create content for social networks and what you need to keep in mind. Download it right right here here!

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Niche social media platforms and how to use them for your business

As a marketer, you know that social media platforms are also promising for businesses, as long as you select the right channels for your marketing goals and maintain them regularly with appropriate content.

Although most companies rely on the top players, it may be interesting for your business and your target group to look into so-called niche platforms. These are lesser-known social media platforms that still have a small reach, but offer innovative approaches and new ways to communicate with the world.

Good reasons for using niche platforms in your social media marketing

Of course, you can potentially reach more people through the big players like Facebook and YouTube.

But are they right for your business?

There are therefore a few good reasons for using niche platforms:

  • True trendsetter: Small, even lesser-known social media platforms are used by a special group of people, mostly early adopters. They are usually eager to experiment and consume, and are very active. If you are active with your company on a small platform at an early stage, you are also a real trendsetter for your customers, which has a positive effect on your brand.
  • Special topics: Some niche platforms focus on specific topics, and it's clear that the people who hang out there are also interested in content on just those topics.
  • Less competition: Content marketing via or placing ads on Facebook & Co. - many companies already do this. On smaller platforms, the competition is much lower and the chance to stand out is higher.
  • Lower advertising costs: Smaller platforms often offer attractive advertising rates.

You should take a closer look at these promising platforms

Pinterest

With 300 million users worldwide, the visual search engine Pinterest is no longer really a niche platform. In this country, 7 million people are active on Pinterest every month, using the platform as an image search, getting inspired and saving their finds on their own pinboard.

Since March 2019, it is also possible to place ads on Pinterest in Germany. Whether Pinterest could be interesting for your business, you may reveal these Pinterest stats. And in this article you can learn more about how to use Pinterest marketing in the B2B sector.

Snapchat

On the instant messaging service Snapchat, which is used by 4 million Germans every day, users can send picture or video messages and also stories to one or more recipients for a limited time.

If you want to target a young audience, Snapchat is an interesting channel for direct communication.

Tik Tok

The Chinese video portal Tik Tok, which bought its former competitor Music.ly in 2017, has 5.5 million monthly users in Germany. Tik Tok tends to attract a young audience between the ages of 11 and 16, who like to be entertained.

This platform could be interesting for companies to address potential trainees or to win over this young target group with creative clips.

Twitch

The Twitch platform is considered YouTube for gamers. Twitch users can follow video games that are streamed live in real time and communicate with the player via a chat function.

Twitch is an interesting channel for influencer marketing because of the close relationship between gamers and the fan base.

Twitch is certainly conceivable for other topics than just gaming, e.g. as a platform for webinars and tutorials or as a livestream of an event. Companies are also already using Twitch as an advertising platform.

Screenshot Twitch.tv (06.01.2020)

Wize.life

For those who are not only interested in the younger target groups, but rather the so-called Best Agers (50plus), they should take a look at Wize.life. Formerly known as seniorbook.de, it is a German portal, a mixture of news portal and community, which, according to the company, records over 5 million users per month.

For companies, Wize.life offers various forms of advertising, such as native advertising, newsletters or ad specials for the compact target group of Best Agers.

Untappd

The niche platform Untappd is all about beer, especially the growing number of craft beers. This social network is all about searching for and rating beers and breweries, making friends, and toasting each other.

With Untappd for Business you and your company have the opportunity to promote events, place ads and reach new customers.

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Relevant trend or just short hype? Tips for dealing with niche platforms

What is smiled at today as one of many social networks could be an interesting (advertising) platform for your company tomorrow. Admittedly, from one day to the next, the development is not quite as obvious.

Still, it doesn't hurt to monitor social networks that have made at least a small name for themselves and keep popping up in the media, study user statistics over several months, and compare whether the users or topics fit your own company's target audience.

These are my tips for dealing with niche social media platforms:

  • Observe the niche platform in question for a few months before you become active. How do the users treat each other here? What values count? Do your company's values fit in?
  • Don't wait too long. If all your competitors are already active on the niche platform before you have thought about a strategy, you may already be too late. If you enter early enough and with the right content, you and your company will be considered a trendsetter.
  • Pay attention to quality. Users are becoming more and more demanding - especially those from niche platforms. This is because they have deliberately chosen smaller networks and avoid what the mainstream consumes.
  • Measure your activity. Be realistic and critical of your social media activity. If you find that your activity on the platform does not bring the desired success, better focus on other social media platforms.

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