Social media. A platform that started with the intention of communicating with near and dear ones across the ‘seven seas’ has now become the norm of marketing.
You see the best of the best brands struggling on social media to maintain their brand image. They have their marketers running from pillar to post looking for ideas to carry out a successful content marketing campaign. But what if they are exhausting all their resources on the wrong platform? They aren’t going to get the returns they expect. Period.
But with the plethora of options for social media today, this mistake doesn’t come across as a surprise. It is something that is bound to happen. Brands have a really tough time determining where to allocate their resources.
So how do you make smarter social media decisions? By understanding the psychology of each of those social media platforms out there. Simple, isn’t it? No!
Unlike what most people think of social media, it isn’t just about Facebook. There are a lot of platforms out there that a brand needs to be visible on and Facebook doesn’t cater to all types of audience.
If you are looking for personal networking – one to one communication with your customers, you are probably doing it right. But if you are looking for professional networking, you are going terribly wrong!
Like there is a difference between our personal and professional lives, there is a very fine line between personal and professional networking that you need to understand. And to give you a head start, here are a few elements that will help you differentiate between the two; so that your brand gets the returns it deserves from social media.
What’s Your Focus On?
People have a different approach to brands on personal networking sites and professional networking sites. Thinking that their reaction to your content strategy on either is going to be the same, would be WRONG. In that very ‘capital – bold manner’. In short, personal networking sites (like Facebook) are good for establishing a connection with your users; but professional networking sites are what brands should focus on for growth.
Time Is Money.
Personal networking sites attract a lot of casual interaction between the brand and its users. But people as click happy as me, might just get distracted with other alluring posts from other brands. But when it comes to professional networking sites, you won’t see anyone wandering about with no agenda at all.
Content Is The New Black!
Seen anyone post pictures of food on professional networking sites like LinkedIn? Well, they do upload such pictures on platforms like Facebook. This means that content posted by people on various social media outlets is a big differentiator between the two types of sites. Most professional sites are about brand updates, economy news and of course, job opportunities!
The News That Matters.
Personal networking sites focus on entertainment – whether worldly news or sheer humor, the content that goes viral on these platforms is far from what would go viral on the professional networking sites. The professional sites cater to diversified topics that are in sync with current affairs, business and economy updates.
While fan pages on personal networking sites are talk about the brand’s products and customer reviews, the professional sites would rather talk about the strategies they adopt.
Playing With Emotions!
We all know that unless we strike a chord with our audience on an emotional level, our social media profiles aren’t going to get us the returns we expect. The only way to make your content go viral is to have it shared; and that takes some emotional play.
On personal networking sites, people are more expressive and hence, it’s easier for brands to figure which posts will do well and which won’t. But playing with emotions on a professional network is a totally different ball game. People are less expressive here and seek only one thing - purpose.
Each social media platform has a distinct purpose to it and as a ground rule; it should not be messed around with. It is vital for brands to analyze the types of posts that do well on various platforms and decide which platform is for them.
When you know what your brand’s purpose is and what audience you are going to be catering to, create your social media marketing strategy.
Isn’t it always better to take stock of the situation before the leap of faith?
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