If you wish to enhance your social media advertising technique, you want to know concerning the various kinds of social media content material and how or the place you share that content material.
Must you give attention to pictures? Movies? Blogs? What about boards? And, after getting your content material, how do you wish to roll it out? You can submit on group overview websites or live-stream it to the plenty. Understanding these various kinds of social media will allow you to develop a greater content material technique and know the place to focus your time and vitality.
That can assist you out, we’ve put collectively a listing of 14 sorts of social media each marketer must know. From social networking to video sharing and social messaging, there’s one thing for everybody (and each enterprise).
Forms of social media
1. Social networking
2. Picture and picture sharing
3. Video sharing
4. Audio sharing
5. Dwell streaming
6. Social messaging
7. Disappearing content material apps
8. Social procuring networks
9. Interactive social media apps
10. Dialogue boards
11. Microblogging platforms
12. Group running a blog websites
13. Social overview websites
14. Social curation and bookmarking websites
1. Social networking websites
Overview: Social networking websites enable individuals to attach with one another by way of a shared on-line area. Customers can like, share, touch upon posts and comply with different customers and companies.
For manufacturers, social media networking websites provide a chance to construct consciousness, create a group of shoppers and followers and drive site visitors to web sites. By creating informative and interesting content material, manufacturers can domesticate relationships with prospects and followers that result in conversions.
Examples: Fb, LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and Snapchat
How manufacturers can use social networking websites:
- Put up, share and reply to viewers content material
- Instantly join with others. Whether or not as associates or followers, an engaged social following alerts clout for entrepreneurs and types alike
- Type communities and talk about related information inside them
2. Picture and picture sharing websites
Overview: Research present that visible content material on social media receives extra engagement than written content material. Visible belongings have additionally turn into a high precedence for contemporary manufacturers, with practically 49% of entrepreneurs saying that visuals are key to their technique.
Platforms like Instagram, which has greater than 1 billion month-to-month energetic customers, have made it simpler than ever earlier than to curate and share pictures and pictures. Manufacturers trying to implement this sort of social media advertising ought to give attention to high-quality, inventive visuals that inform a narrative.
Examples: Instagram, Snapchat, Pinterest and Imgur
How manufacturers can use photograph and picture sharing websites:
- Put up high-quality, inventive pictures that illustrate your model values
- Curate and promote user-generated content material by way of branded hashtags
- Interact with prospects and followers in actual time
3. Video sharing websites
Overview: Half of all social media customers say they like video to every other sort of content material. Very like image-based social websites, video hubs like YouTube, TikTok and Vimeo are attracting guests in droves by way of visible content material.
Why is video so well-liked? Nicely, video content material requires much less effort for viewers to soak up. There’s no studying or no scrolling, simply watching. To not point out, movies are optimum for educating your viewers. How-to’s and tutorials are the cornerstones of social video content material.
Examples: YouTube, TikTok and Vimeo
How manufacturers can use video sharing websites:
- Use video to display how your services or products works
- Share buyer testimonials and success tales
- Create useful how-to guides and tutorials associated to your business
- Spotlight firm tradition with behind-the-scenes footage
4. Audio sharing websites
Overview: Audio sharing websites are a kind of social media that turned well-liked through the COVID-19 pandemic. Caught at dwelling with Zoom fatigue, individuals have been in search of a better option to devour content material, and audio-only proved to be the answer.
Social apps like Clubhouse provide customers a novel option to join with others and share concepts. The sort of social media remains to be in its early days however exhibits numerous promise for the longer term.
Examples: Clubhouse, Twitter Areas and Fb Dwell Audio Rooms
How manufacturers can use audio sharing websites:
- Share behind-the-scenes content material, like interviews with staff and firm leaders
- Host stay occasions and Q&A occasions with prospects or consultants in your business
- Take listeners on a journey by sharing audio tales or vignettes
5. Dwell streaming apps
Overview: Dwell streaming apps enable customers to share real-time video with their followers. This content material is commonly unedited and genuine, giving viewers a particular behind-the-scenes glimpse into the lifetime of the particular person streaming.
The stay streaming market is booming, with greater than 482 billion hours watched in 2020 alone. Stream all the things from concert events to eSports, product launches and past.
Examples: YouTube Dwell, Fb Dwell, Twitch and UStream
How manufacturers can use stay streaming apps:
- Give viewers a candid have a look at your model
- Construct anticipation for upcoming merchandise or occasions with stay teasers
- Improve gross sales by providing unique offers and reductions to viewers tuning in stay
6. Social messaging apps
Overview: Social messaging apps are a kind of social media that enables customers to speak in actual time. One of the well-liked messaging apps—WhatsApp— has greater than 200 billion month-to-month customers!
Whereas they aren’t historically considered a advertising device, messaging apps like WhatsApp is usually a highly effective option to attain and have interaction along with your audience. Manufacturers can use them to offer customer support, product suggestions and even to make gross sales.
Examples: Fb Messenger, Twitter DMs, Google Enterprise Messenger, WhatsApp and WeChat
How manufacturers can use social messaging apps:
- Use chatbots to reply buyer questions
- Ship out automated coupon codes or low cost presents
- Create a personal group for loyal prospects and followers
- Use Good Inbox to observe all incoming messages and conversations in a single place
7. Disappearing content material apps
Overview: Disappearing content material, also referred to as ephemeral content material, refers to content material that solely exists for a brief time frame earlier than it expires or is not out there. Snapchat popularized this format, however now different platforms like Instagram, Fb and WhatsApp provide related options.
Disappearing content material is a good way so as to add pleasure and urgency to your advertising campaigns. It could possibly additionally allow you to join with youthful audiences who are inclined to flock to this sort of social media. Instagram Tales alone have greater than 500 million every day energetic customers.
Examples: Snapchat, Instagram Tales and Fb Tales
How manufacturers can use disappearing content material apps:
- Promote time-sensitive gross sales and reductions
- Encourage your viewers to share their very own disappearing content material
- Create behind-the-scenes content material to offer your viewers a peek into your model
8. Social procuring networks
Overview: Social procuring has turn into more and more well-liked lately. Most social media platforms now enable customers to browse and buy merchandise with out ever leaving their app.
This a handy method for customers to buy, and it gives manufacturers with a novel alternative to promote their merchandise on to their audience. Contemplating that 60% of individuals say they discover new merchandise on Instagram, and 75% of Pinterest customers say they’re “all the time procuring” within the app, social procuring holds numerous worth for companies.
Examples: Fb for Enterprise, Shopify x TikTok, Instagram Store and Pinterest Shoppable Pins
How manufacturers can use social procuring networks :
- Create a Fb store and hyperlink it to your Fb and Instagram pages
- Use Pinterest Shoppable Pins to tag merchandise in your posts and permit customers to buy them with out leaving the app
- Add a TikTok Store to your profile and promote merchandise on to your followers
- Tag merchandise in Instagram posts and Tales and hyperlink to your web site or different platforms like Shopify
9. Interactive social media apps
Overview: These kinds of social media apps give attention to consumer interplay and engagement. They encourage customers to speak, often by way of gamification, competitions or voting.
For instance, Snapchat’s “Lenses” function lets customers add augmented-reality filters to their pictures and movies. And, TikTok has “Duets” that enable customers to report themselves singing or dancing alongside one other consumer’s video.
Examples: Instagram Tales, Snapchat, TikTok, Tumblr and Weibo
How manufacturers can use interactive social media apps:
- Create a branded Snapchat Lens or Filter that your viewers can play with
- Encourage customers to Duet your TikTok video to win a prize
- Keep energetic within the remark part of Weibo Tales
10. Dialogue boards
Overview: Dialogue boards are on-line platforms the place individuals can ask questions, give solutions and begin discussions on quite a lot of subjects. For instance, Reddit has communities (known as subreddits) for nearly each subject conceivable, from jokes to cryptocurrency.
Manufacturers can go to boards to interact in social listening—studying what individuals are saying about them and getting suggestions from prospects and potential prospects.
Examples: Reddit, Quora and Stack Overflow
How manufacturers can use dialogue boards:
- Crowdsource product suggestions and concepts in related discussion board threads
- Present buyer help in boards the place your individuals are discussing your model
- Take part in related subreddits and reply questions associated to your business
11. Microblogging platforms
Overview: Microblogging is a kind of social media advertising that enables customers to submit brief updates or messages. Twitter is probably the most well-known instance of microblogging, permitting customers to tweet in 140 characters or much less.
Whereas microblogging was as soon as dominated by Twitter, platforms like LinkedIn and Tumblr have additionally turn into well-liked microblogging websites.
Examples: Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest and LinkedIn
How manufacturers can use microblogging platforms:
- Use hashtags to hitch conversations about your business or product
- Share information, articles and different content material related to your followers
- Provide buyer help or reply questions in microblogs or feedback
Overview: Group running a blog websites are platforms the place individuals can come collectively to put in writing articles, share concepts and collaborate on tasks. Most group running a blog websites give attention to a particular area of interest or subject, which makes them an ideal useful resource for locating new content material concepts and connecting with different like-minded people. In addition they are inclined to have very engaged customers, which will be helpful for selling your model or product.
Examples: Medium, GrowthHackers, BlogEngage and DoSplash
How manufacturers can use group running a blog websites:
- Create or curate content material round a particular subject
- Construct relationships with different bloggers in your area of interest
- Generate site visitors again to your personal weblog
13. Social overview websites
Overview: In line with Statista, 36% of customers use on-line evaluations to tell their buy selections. Lots of them additionally belief on-line evaluations as a lot as private suggestions.
Curating, amassing and interesting along with your on-line evaluations is important to success in lots of industries right now. Plus, do you know you’ll be able to submit on to your Google Enterprise Profile utilizing Sprout Social?
Examples: Google Enterprise Profile, Amazon, Yelp and Fb
How manufacturers can use social overview websites:
- Monitor and reply to evaluations in a well timed method
- Encourage joyful prospects to depart optimistic evaluations
- Use detrimental evaluations as a chance to enhance your enterprise
14. Social curation and bookmarking websites
Overview: Social bookmarking helps you to save net pages so you’ll be able to revisit them later. These websites additionally enable customers so as to add annotations, share bookmarks with others and uncover new content material.
Use this sort of social media to curate content material on your group or prospects. It’s additionally an ideal place to create a content material bucket than you’ll be able to repurpose throughout your social media channels.
Examples: Pocket (pictured above), Digg, Pinterest and Combine
How manufacturers can use social curation and bookmarking websites:
- Create a content material bucket that your group can use on social
- Accumulating buyer analysis and insights
- Discover related content material to share along with your viewers and reserve it for later
Which sort of social media is true for your enterprise?
The sorts of social media websites you utilize for your enterprise needs to be primarily based in your objectives. If you wish to enhance model consciousness, think about using a mixture of social networking and content material curation websites. If you happen to’re trying to construct relationships with prospects, give attention to social networking websites. And if you wish to generate leads or gross sales, think about using social bookmarking or e-commerce websites.
If you happen to’re utilizing a number of sorts of social media advertising in your technique, think about using a social media administration platform like Sprout Social. With Sprout, you’ll be able to share content material throughout main social channels, have interaction along with your viewers and monitor the efficiency of your social media campaigns from one location. Begin your free trial right now!
