In today’s digital age, having a presence on social media is not just an option; it’s a necessity for small businesses. With a whopping 75% of internet users turning to social media to research products, over four billion potential consumers are waiting to discover your brand [1]. Every social media platform has its specialty, whether it’s promoting engaging blogs, highlighting business insights, or flaunting eye-catching product photos. Understanding what resonates with your audience can be your compass in choosing the perfect platforms to showcase your brand. But with a vast landscape of major social media platforms, where should you focus your efforts to ensure you’re reaching your target audience effectively?
In this blog, we’ll walk you through the major players on social media and how you can use them as tools to grow your small business. With each platform offering unique strengths and characteristics, making the wrong decision can be both costly and time-consuming. Let’s take a quick look at some of the most popular social media platforms available in 2023. Understanding each platform’s unique features and demographics is the first step toward making an informed choice.
Platform Overview
1. Facebook – The All-Rounder (2.9 billion+users)
Facebook is the OG social media giant with a wide range of content types, including text, images, videos, and live streaming. Canada’s user base of 20+ million people continues to stay relatively steady [1], and from creating a business page to sharing your brand story, products, and services, to running targeted ads that reach your ideal customers, Facebook offers a range of tools to help your small business thrive. With features like Facebook Groups and Events, you can foster a community around your brand, bringing together like-minded people who share a passion for what you do.
How Facebook Helps Small Businesses: Ideal for building brand awareness, fostering interactions, and driving traffic to your website.
2. YouTube – The Video Giant (2.5 billion+ users)
YouTube is not just a platform; it’s a search engine in itself. Users flock to YouTube for video content on every topic imaginable. With such a vast user base, it’s a goldmine for businesses to create compelling content that entertains, educates, and builds a loyal following. From product tutorials to behind-the-scenes glimpses into your brand’s journey, YouTube allows you to engage with your audience on a personal level, building trust and credibility along the way. With YouTube’s Partner Program, you can turn your passion into profit, earning revenue from ads and sponsorships too.
How YouTube Helps Small Businesses: Perfect for video content and tutorials, and it provides a chance to connect with a massive and diverse audience.
3. Instagram – Visual Storytelling (2 billion+ users)
Instagram is a visual paradise for businesses. From photos to Stories and Reels, it offers diverse content options as a thriving marketplace for businesses to flaunt their products and services in all their visual glory. With 500 million daily users for Instagram Stories alone [4], it’s a platform with immense engagement potential, especially with more than half its Canadian users ranging 18-35 years old [5]. It’s the perfect platform for your small business to showcase your brand’s personality. Plus, with Instagram’s shoppable posts, you can turn those likes into actual sales, making it a direct line from admiration to purchase.
How Instagram Helps Small Businesses: Ideal for building a visually appealing brand and engaging with an audience through captivating imagery and short videos.
4. WhatsApp Business – Direct Customer Engagement (2 billion+ users)
WhatsApp boasts a staggering 2 billion users and is a top choice for direct customer engagement through messaging and is a secret weapon for small business owners looking to streamline customer communication and build lasting relationships. From quick responses to product inquiries to sharing exclusive offers and updates, WhatsApp Business allows businesses to be right at their customers’ fingertips, ensuring they feel valued and heard. You can create business profiles, showcase your products, and even set up automated messages to handle FAQs, ensuring your customers always get the information they need, pronto.
How WhatsApp Helps Small Businesses: It’s perfect for direct and immediate customer engagement, enhancing customer satisfaction, and driving conversions.
5. TikTok – The Video Playground (1 billion+ users)
TikTok has taken the world by storm with its short-form video format. It’s a platform where creativity flourishes, boasting over a billion users worldwide. This platform isn’t just for dance challenges and lip-syncing anymore. Small businesses are hopping on the TikTok train to showcase their products and services in unique, engaging ways that resonate with their target audience. From quirky product demos to behind-the-scenes glimpses of their brand story, TikTok allows businesses to inject personality into their marketing, fostering authentic connections with their customers.
How TikTok Helps Small Businesses: It’s an excellent choice for businesses targeting a younger demographic and looking to create engaging video content.
6. X (formerly Twitter) – Real-Time Updates (564 million+ users)
Formerly known as Twitter, the rebranded X has become a tool for small business owners looking to connect with brands, media, politicians, and celebrities. With its snappy and real-time communication style, X allows businesses to effortlessly share updates, promotions, and compelling content, creating a direct line to their audience and sparking lively interactions through likes, retweets, and comments. By jumping on trending topics and using clever hashtags, small businesses can catapult their messages into the limelight, reaching a broader audience, which means good exposure and brand recognition.
How Twitter Helps Small Businesses: Perfect for timely updates, engaging with your audience, and using hashtags to increase visibility.
7. Pinterest – Visual Discovery (463 million+ users)
Pinterest is a hub for inspiration and product discovery. It serves as a visually-driven search engine, enabling businesses to showcase their products and services through eye-catching images and videos. With its emphasis on aesthetics and creativity, small businesses can leverage Pinterest’s highly active use base to promote their products. The platform’s “Buyable Pins” feature facilitates seamless transactions, enabling small businesses to promote and sell products directly to their audience.
How Pinterest Helps Small Businesses: Perfect for visually appealing products, DIY projects, and creative content.
8. LinkedIn – The Professional Network (310 million+ users)
LinkedIn caters to the business-oriented crowd. It’s all about professional networking, making it perfect for B2B interactions, thought leadership, and talent recruitment. By creating a company page on LinkedIn, small businesses can effectively showcase their products, services, and achievements, thereby enhancing brand visibility and recognition among a community of professionals or potential clients.
How LinkedIn Helps Small Businesses: Ideal for establishing thought leadership, connecting with professionals, and recruiting top talent.
In the ever-evolving landscape of social media, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. We hope that this blog was helpful in figuring out which platforms best suit your business goals and the audience you’re keen to connect with. Remember, you don’t need to be everywhere; it’s more about picking the platforms where your brand can truly make a meaningful impact.
Sources
[1] P. Briggs, “Canada Social Media Outlook 2023,” 25 January 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.insiderintelligence.com/content/canada-social-media-outlook-2023#page-report. [Accessed 13 October 2023].
[2] S. Kemp, “Digital 2022: Global Overview Report — DataReportal – Global Digital Insights,” 26 January 2022. [Online]. Available: https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2022-global-overview-report. [Accessed 8 October 2023].
[3] “Global Social Media Statistics — DataReportal – Global Digital Insights,” July 2023. [Online]. Available: https://datareportal.com/social-media-users. [Accessed 8 October 2023].
[4] A. Read, “Instagram Stories: The Complete Guide to Use IG Stories to Boost Engagement for Your Brand,” Buffer, 16 March 2023. [Online]. Available: https://buffer.com/library/instagram-stories/#:~:text=There%20are%20currently%20over%20500,brands%20that%20feature%20those%20products. [Accessed 13 October 2023].
[5] S. J. Dixon, “Canada Instagram users by age 2023,” 25 July 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/859285/instagram-user-share-in-canada-age/. [Accessed 13 October 2023].
[6] M. Woodward, “TikTok User Statistics 2023: Everything You Need To Know,” 20 September 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.searchlogistics.com/learn/statistics/tiktok-user-statistics/. [Accessed 8 October 2023].
