In Search of Eyeballs: The Pros and Cons of 6 Social Media Channels - iContact

• Updated on: 2017-09-22
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In Search of Eyeballs: The Pros and Cons of 6 Social Media Channels
A staggering 90% of marketers say social media is important to their businesses. That number may fluctuate a bit, but the fact is that social media is now part of daily life for billions of people across the globe. That’s a lot of eyeballs that could be looking at you. Whatever industry you are in, whatever business you may run, whether you are a for-profit or not-for-profit organization, if you are not on social media in some way, shape, or form, you do not exist in today’s digital world. It’s brutal, but true.
While there’s little doubt that social media has become essential in building brand awareness, generating leads, and connecting with target audiences, each social network has its own strengths and weaknesses  — which means that certain platforms are better suited for specific goals. For instance, the audience you reach on LinkedIn is probably going to look very different from the audience you might attract on Snapchat. Because each social media network is different, let’s take a quick look at the pros and cons of six of the most popular ones that can put the eyeballs you need on your brand.
Founded in 2004, Facebook has become the social network. With almost 1.8 billion monthly active users , it’s hands down the most popular social network in the world. According to Pew Research, n early eight in 10 online Americans (79%) now use Facebook, more than double the share that uses Twitter (24%), Pinterest (31%), Instagram (32%), or LinkedIn (29%) . On average, the Like and Share buttons are viewed across almost 10 million websites daily. And Facebook is almost evenly used by both men (47%) and women (53%).
Pros:
Facebook has an extensive reach and a diverse audience. Seriously, you are talking about billions
Almost any type of content , including articles, videos, and images, can easily be promoted.
It’s a hot platform for “Live” video, and Facebook is making a move to compete for longer-video programming.
AdWords and Facebook work well with each other.
For many companies, it provides a strong platform for providing customer support quickly.
Facebook doesn’t let the grass grow under its feet. It is constantly evolving and trying new ways to leverage content on the site.
Cons:
There’s almost zero organic reach. That’s no exaggeration. Facebook is now a pay-to-play platform. If you do not sponsor the occasional post or buy some Facebook advertising, your content basically goes nowhere.
Facebook has some of the best targeting options: yes, I know that was a pro, but it is also a con. In fact, Facebook has so many options for targeting, remarketing, advertising, etc., that it can seem overwhelming; it will take a novice a bit of time to learn the ropes. And don’t count on any help from Facebook.
It’s the most competitive network in terms of trying to get those eyeballs on you. Pretty much everyone is in this game now, so you have to work hard to stand out.
Teens and millennials prefer other networks. (Conversely, it may be a great way to reach a nonmillennial audience, since boomers and seniors are taking to Facebook with a vengeance; according to Pew Research , 72% of American adults age 50-64 are using Facebook.)
If you do provide product support on your Facebook Page, people expect an instant response from you. It requires staff time and attention to monitor and respond in a timely fashion — or your followers will tell you just how unhappy they are, in a very public forum.
Overall, Facebook is a great place to start when launching a social media campaign or keeping your audience informed; it’s perfect for increasing brand awareness and storytelling, and sharing recorded and live video. However, your content has to be engaging, which is often easier for B2C marketers, such as entertainment, food, or fashion, than it is for B2B businesses that may have to work a bit harder and think more creatively to generate engagement.
Twitter
With over  690 million registered users , Twitter has become one of the most recognizable social platforms in the world. According to Pew Research, about one-quarter of online adults (24%) use Twitter; its numbers skew to a younger demographic, with only about 10% of adults age 65 and over on the network. Like Facebook, it’s split almost 50/50 between the sexes , with 53% female and 47% male users. Last year, Twitter changed its iOS app category from “social network” to “news” to increase visibility and get out from under Facebook in the social category.
Pros:
There’s a fast reaction from your audience (good or bad).
It can be used to test content with strong headlines.
It’s arguably the best platform for breaking news, memes, gifs, announcements, product launches, trending topics, and conversations. Unlike Facebook, where only some of your posts reach your followers, all of your posts reach your followers (though this does not mean that all your followers are going to read or pay attention to what you post).
Cons:
Twitter is busy. In fact, there are 350,000 tweets sent per minute!
People often share content without actually reading (We recently saw a Tweet linking to deleted content that was being shared over and over again despite the link going nowhere.)
Content lifespan is short (the average lifespan of a Tweet is about 18 minutes), so you have to Tweet often and consistently to generate a following.
Traffic from Twitter often comes with low purchase intent.
It can be expensive to advertise on Twitter.
It requires a steady stream of content, repetition, and attention.
User growth is stalling.
Again, if you use Twitter to provide support, you’d better respond quickly (see Facebook above.)
Trolls and irate tweeters can give you and your brand a headache. You need to keep a close eye on things.
Twitter is becoming more of a news source than a social platform, especially after the 2016 election, which has brought increased attention to the social network as a source of breaking news and, shall we say, White House communications. Attention is definitely on Twitter at the moment, so if you have the content and time, or rely on news to sell your products or services, then Twitter can be a good place to jump in .
LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a platform specifically designed for professionals. In a nutshell, it connects businesses with potential employees and customers. There are more than 467 million people on LinkedIn, and it is used evenly among men and women . According to Pew, a quarter of all U.S. adults are using LinkedIn, 45% of whom earn $75K or more.
Pros:
LinkedIn is a reliable and steady B2B platform (According to BuzzSumo and the Content Marketing Institute, LinkedIn surpasses Facebook and Twitter for social shares in many B2B areas , making it a key outlet for sharing long-form content especially.)
It’s ideal for establishing yourself as an industry leader and influencer.
It has a large, professional, and highly targeted audience.
It’s perfect for networking with individuals one on one.
It can be used as a research tool for your target industries/markets and competitors.
Its new conversion pixel makes it easier to gauge the effectiveness of paid advertising.
LinkedIn recently added website retargeting, email contact retargeting, and account targeting , opening up a whole new plethora of advertising possibilities.
LinkedIn’s new Trending Storylines feature , which they just began to roll out yesterday, has potential for further amplifying user-generated content. This new section on the home page feed will be surfacing curated, algorithm-based news clusters based on user interests and industry, that will be a combination of outside content plus user posts. So it’s possible that good content you post on the platform can gain greater visibility.
Cons:
LinkedIn has a smaller footprint than Facebook or Twitter (but, as my friends on LinkedIn will argue, what it doesn’t offer in terms of quantity of engagement, it makes up for in quality).
It requires time and commitment to providing a steady stream of content that brings value to your audience. Forget the silly stuff; people on LinkedIn are looking to get smarter or better at their jobs (that doesn’t mean you cannot have a sense of humor with your content, though).
It may not be a great platform for selling B2C products (but it’s a very good platform for B2B engagement).
Advertising on LinkedIn is expensive, although if you hit the sweet spot, you can achieve a high-quality engagement.
LinkedIn is not as nimble to use as Facebook (for goodness’ sake, you still cannot edit posts!), and ad targeting is not as complex — although it could be argued that that’s a good thing. For a novice social media advertiser, LinkedIn’s advertising platform is not difficult to tackle.
In a nutshell, if you’re looking to network with a professional, more serious audience, generate leads, or establish yourself as a thought leader, then there’s no better platform than LinkedIn.
Instagram
Instagram has taken social media by storm over the last couple of years. In fact, it recently reached 600 million users . What’s appealing about this photo and video sharing platform is that more than 90% of its users are under 35, which has become the largest age demographic , surpassing boomers in terms of numbers. (By the way, gen X — people age 35-50 in 2015 — is projected to pass boomers in population by 2028.) Those younger whippersnappers flock to Instagram, and they are loyal — about half (51%) of Instagram users access the platform on a daily basis, with 35% checking in several times a day .
Pros:
If you know how to use #hashtags — and lots of them — you can quickly grow your followers.
Cons:
Instagram is primarily used for branding, though it can be very effective for direct sales.
It’s a relatively young platform, so there’s a more limited audience and many brands are still figuring out what to do with it.
You’ll need strategic (i.e., compelling and professional) visual content.
More and more advertising could impact organic posts.
You can’t really manage it on a desktop; you can use scheduling tools as a workaround, but you still need a mobile device to do the final posting. Something I find personally annoying.
If your audience is primarily young or you have fabulous, trend-worthy, or entertaining visual content, then there’s no better channel than Instagram. However, if you want to connect with CEOs or rely on written content, then you’re better turning to a different social platform.
Pinterest
Pinterest is another visual content -sharing social platform. It is considered THE online corkboard where users can create themed “boards” that are related to a specific topic. Unlike other platforms, Pinterest isn’t really about creating content; it’s more about curating it. So far, Pinterest has around 70 million active monthly users , 80% of them women. If you are looking to target a high-income, largely female audience, Pinterest is a good place to try. About a quarter of Pinterest users check in on a daily basis , and they are really out for eye candy when they do.
Pros:
The “Pin It” button that many people add to their browser makes it very easy to share  your content.
It’s able to quickly generate traffic to your website; the content you post is hyperlinked to the original source.
Unlike Facebook, which actually limits your organic reach, all your Pinterest boards are public and available to everyone to see.
It’s perfect if you have lots of products to showcase and/or high-quality images.
If you have a lot of visual B2B content to share, such as infographics, it’s a great place to curate them.
You can add a “Buy” button so that you can directly sell products to your audience.
It’s fun and visually appealing (and a little addicting).
People go on Pinterest for inspiration, so it give you plenty of scope to get, well…inspirational.
Cons:
It can be hard to figure out how to leverage Pinterest at first, especially for B2B businesses. Like all social platforms, it’s free to start, so you can experiment and see if it is worth your time without making a financial investment.
If you don’t have many products or high-quality images, it’s not going to be an effective channel for you to use.
You need to do regular housekeeping to insure all the links on your images are live and working; there’s nothing worse than clicking on a Pin to get more info, only to find a dead link that takes you nowhere. That will quickly kill your buzz.
It helps if your target audience is female-centered; otherwise, your reach will be limited.
Brands and ad buyers are still trying to get a handle on Pinterest advertising , which is a work in progress, with a potential that is yet to be determined.
Pinterest is largely a lifestyle-oriented, aspirational platform. If you’re selling food and fashion, you are in the right spot. If you are selling cement, you are going to have a harder time making a dent here.
Snapchat
Since its arrival in 2011, Snapchat has become one of the most hyped social media channels. In fact , Snapchat is better known than LinkedIn and Pinterest, has more users than Twitter, Pinterest, or LinkedIn, and has been cited as the second-most popular social network in the United States. Snapchat is kind of the wild child of social media platforms. Pretty much anything goes, literally, so you have to wade through a lot of junk to find the good nuggets.
Pros:
It’s hot. It’s extremely popular with millennials, who are watching billions of snaps per day. There’s a strong case to be made for engaging your audience where they are.
The filters and editing options make it fun and engaging.
You can see who has viewed your snaps, making it the only social media platform where you can know your lurkers, not just your followers. It can give you an interesting snapshot (sorry) of your audience.
If there is an event going on, Snapchat gathers relevant snaps and creates a collected story, so you too can be part of the cultural zeitgeist.
The commercial content doesn’t feel as commercial as it does, say, on Facebook.
Snapchat is pushing the boundaries: its new camcorder-like goggles — Spectacles — open up a wealth of possibilities for easily using circular footage to, as Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel says, “experience the experience.”
Cons:
The content is temporary; very temporary. It disappears within 24 hours, so you’d better be a massive content generator if you want to keep up any momentum.
Most of the content isn’t valuable in the traditional business sense. Let’s face it, much of it is junk.
It’s difficult to add “friends;” you either have to have their contact info, Snapchat user ID or Snapcode, or you have to heavily promote yours so that people can add you.
The interface can be confusing; there’s a lot of swiping going on.
It’s difficult to measure the success of ephemeral snaps.
People largely still see it as just for “kids”—though as my colleague marketing pro John Hayes reminds us, “ Kids grow up (quickly), and the social media channels they play with now will become the social media channels they work on in the future. ”
For businesses that have a young audience and want to give them a glimpse into the daily life of their brand, Snapchat does offer creative potential. However, of all the social platforms discussed above, it might be the most challenging to leverage for “business” use. But you just might want to keep it on your To Do list to explore in 2017. Honestly, it’s still on my To Do list.
So which platform is right for you? Probably a combination of several. Take into account the strengths and drawbacks of each social channel and measure them against your organization’s goals. At the very least, a presence on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn is appropriate and necessary for any business or organization. After that, it’s up to you, and it will depend on the staff and financial resources you have available.
It’s worth noting that social media is a great partner to email marketing. Email and social media are the top two platforms receiving increasing portions of the marketing spend. That’s because they are the channels delivering the best results. And each platform, individually and in unison, continues to drive the conversation between brands and their target audiences. iContact’s built-in social tools make it easy to post on and manage your social media accounts, so there’s really no excuse for not at least dipping your toe into the major social channels.
I’m curious: to get eyeballs on your organization, what’s your favorite social media platform?
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