What Social Media Platforms Should You Be On?
8 MIN READ
The question I get asked most frequently is “what’s the next social media platform I should be on?” This isn’t exactly a new question, but it’s something I’m hearing regularly now. It makes sense—people across generations are reporting feeling disenchanted with the social media platforms they once loved. Facebook and Instagram are old news at this point. Twitter/X is an unmitigated disaster. Even TikTok has been deemed “ruined” with the ever present TikTok Shop promos.
Is Threads the next best thing? Or maybe we should forgo social media entirely and invest our time in Substack. While the answer isn’t cut and dry, the good news is that it’s pretty easy to figure out what platform is best for you and your brand by taking into consideration only a few things. Namely, the time you can dedicate to social media, where your target audience spends their time, and what kind of presence your particular niche already has on the platform.
I’ll help you answer these questions as we dive into what platforms are right for your brand.
Facebook has stood the test of time and will celebrate its 20th birthday this year (a little hard to wrap your mind around, isn’t it?). Over the last two decades, Facebook’s reputation has ebbed and flowed—once the triumphant sequel to MySpace and now perceived as a Boomer playground.
While the perceptions exist, Facebook continues to be a successful platform that appeals to all ages. It’s currently the largest app in the world, with over 3 billion active monthly users. What’s more interesting is most folks using the app aren’t Baby Boomers or Gen X. In fact, the largest age group of Facebook users is between the ages of 25-34, staunchly Millennial with even a touch of Gen Z thrown in. That being said, all age groups over the age of 18 are still well-represented on the platform.
Another Facebook perk is its role in the Meta universe. As Meta is home to Facebook and Instagram, their connectedness makes paid advertising across platforms to highly targeted audiences easy and affordable.
It’s worth your time if you:
Have a broad audience that spreads across generations or leans older.
Want stability in your platforms and confidence in their future.
Like to post a variety of content, from link previews to long-form video.
Threads
One glorious, hot summer day in July, Threads launched and the world of social media seemed ready to shift into a new age of internet usage. People were bubbly and ecstatic to join a brand new platform with millions of others. But that dream quickly plummeted as daily active users disappeared from the platform in droves.
Right now, Threads is on shaky ground. There are currently 141 million Threads users worldwide, with about 10.3 million daily active users. Not great for an app that reached over 100 million users in just two days. Despite these numbers, there’s still hope for Threads. With the backing of Meta and integration with Instagram, it not only has the purse strings available for growth but also the user data to further optimize the platform. Plus, there’s the matter of Twitter being in a perpetual state of disaster, but we’ll get to that shortly.
It’s worth your time if you:
Want to try something new without too many risks
Are ready to part ways with Twitter
Have a healthy Instagram presence to build on
With each year, I hear more brands and content creators talk about how difficult it is to build traction on Instagram. The platform’s fundamental shift from photo-first app to TikTok Lite changed how we interact and what content we create. Despite the difficulties faced as creators, Instagram has an audience of 2 billion users that leans predominantly towards Gen Z and Millennials. This is a market that most lifestyle brands can’t afford to miss out on.
Like with Facebook, your ad spend can get you far on Instagram with the wide net you’re able to cast, ultimately increasing your reach and ROI. But keep in mind large volumes of ads popping up in their feeds can frustrate Instagram users, so be judicious in your IG advertising strategy.
It’s worth your time if you:
Enjoy making “aesthetic” content (beautifully executed photo and video)
Have time to invest in community engagement
Are targeting a Gen Z and Millennial demographic
TikTok
To some, the social media darling of the last few years. To others, the dancing app. TikTok is many things to many people given its uncanny ability to serve you up just the right content to suit your unique interests. Gen Z and Millennials make up most users on the platform, with 11-17-year-olds spending up to two hours a day on TikTok.
TikTok’s appeal lies in the manufactured authenticity of the user’s experience when watching their favorite creators. While there are tons of successful videos without filters, transitions, or storyboards, much of the content we see performs well today strikes the careful balance of seeming “authentic” while being expertly constructed and edited. It’s not an effortless task for any brand—personal or corporate.
It’s worth your time if you:
Are targeting a Gen Z audience
Have time to be in front of the camera and edit videos
Care about trends and current hot topics
Twitter/X
X, formerly known as Twitter, is in its flop era. In fact, X even made our wish list as the social platform we’re hoping to finally say goodbye to in 2024. Without even taking Elon’s behavior into consideration, recent data points to a troubling future of the app.
Research suggests that 10% of users are responsible for 92% of tweets. Surveys also point to nearly 70% of US women taking a break from X and nearly 55% of men. These numbers are concerning enough, but to make matters worse, reputable industry resources like Social Media Today are digging into reports provided by X, only to find out that the information X is sharing is at best misleading and at worst inaccurate.
Putting the numbers aside, many of us, myself included, have a soft spot for Twitter, mainly because it’s one of the last corners of social media that hasn’t turned to all video or photos. There’s just something about text-only posts with short word count expectations.
It’s worth your time if you:
Already have an established presence on X
Aren’t interested in photo or video content
Feel like your audience remains active on the platform
Pinterest is the unsung hero of social media platforms. As the platform continues to grow, more brands are jumping on the Pinterest train, especially as a way to reach Gen Z women and facilitate e-commerce purchases, but I still don’t think it gets enough hype.
Pinterest is a haven for many social media users because the expectations feel lower. You’re not expected to make content to take part—you can simply appreciate other people’s photos and videos and save them to a particular board you’ve cultivated just for you. However, as a brand, expectations are also lower because that same community building element that’s essential in other platforms doesn’t really exist on Pinterest.
Instead, brands can consider Pinterest to be more social media meets search engine. Users are looking for specific content and your images/photos should be the ones that fulfill that query. If you do, you’ve essentially struck gold as most Pinterest users come to the platform with a shopping mindset—nearly 85% users having bought something based on pins from brands. As a cherry on top, your posts on Pinterest have a long lifespan, usually between 6-12 months, compared to the 24 hours we see on most other platforms.
It’s worth your time if you:
Have an abundance of inspirational, high-quality images and video
Are an e-commerce brand and can set up a shop
Target mostly women audiences
LinkedIn is a trickier platform to give a straightforward answer on. This is due to the necessity of having a LinkedIn profile if you’re any sort of business. If you’re a brand and employ people or partner with other brands in the future, you need to have at least some sort of presence on LinkedIn to help build trust in your business and offer a glimpse into your company. It’s also a good idea if you’re a personal brand as it’s a popular, career-focused space that gives you the opportunity to promote your accomplishments and potentially reach the right decision makers for your next partnership.
The real question lies in your level of activity on the platform. Is a “lights-on” approach appropriate or do you need to be an active user? To answer this, you’ll need to focus on your objectives and intended audience. LinkedIn is the ideal location to generate new business leads, but not necessarily the place to gain fresh followers, previously unfamiliar with your brand. The social etiquette on the platform usually requires more perceived personal connection than you would see on other platforms. Given this focus on connection, paid campaigns won’t make that much of a difference in your success either without a significant budget, unless you’re looking to B2B marketing.
It’s worth your time if you:
Focus on B2B lead gen
Enjoy writing long-form content
Have an employee advocacy program
YouTube
Like Pinterest, YouTube is another platform that’s part social media, part search engine. In fact, it’s the second most popular search engine behind Google and also the second most popular social platform behind Facebook. YouTube has an extensive reach across all ages, with over 60% of US internet users accessing YouTube daily. Children in the US spend over an hour a day on YouTube.
However, YouTube arguably requires the greatest amount of production value and technical skill. While some grainy videos and low lit footage perform well, viewers mostly expect crisp audio and HD video. YouTube Shorts don’t have the same expectations, but this will only be a portion of your YouTube presence. .
It’s worth your time if you:
Have video and audio editing skills
Are tuned into the search terms relevant to your brand
Want to reach a large audience
With so many platforms to pick from, it can be hard to choose where to focus your time. Hopefully, this guide has given you the insight you need to select 2-3 platforms to establish your brand on. If not, we can help. Don’t hesitate to reach out or schedule an exploratory call.