How does the following work: Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube? What’s the difference between them? How are they similar? How are they different? And do I really need to be on all of them to be successful in my business? In this breakdown of social media you’ll learn how each site differs and how you can implement them into your own strategy for success.
Twitter (1)
Twitter is currently one of, if not the most popular social media platforms available. Users post short messages (tweets) that can be up to 140 characters in length. While Twitter is less personal than other networks, it provides a platform for sharing information and connecting with other users who may be interested in your work/brand or field of study.
Facebook (2)
Facebook is one of social media’s original heavy hitters. The platform was created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg, who then famously dropped out of Harvard University to focus on Facebook full-time. In 2014, Facebook had a market cap of $179 billion and revenues of $12.5 billion. The site has 901 million daily active users, 765 million monthly active users, and 1.39 billion monthly mobile users as of September 2015.
LinkedIn (3)
LinkedIn is a great resource for job seekers, recruiters and other professionals. While it’s a social media site, users mostly use it as a networking tool to help their careers. LinkedIn is appropriate for all professions, but it’s particularly great for those in business-to-business environments.
Instagram (4)
Instagram is a social platform that allows its users to take pictures or videos and apply filters to change colors or other aspects of an image. Instagram can also be used to chat with others who are following you, and hashtags can be used to tag different types of content so others can find it more easily. This social media platform is primarily used by younger generations, but people of all ages use it regularly.
Pinterest (5)
Pinterest is great for collecting and organizing all of your favorite things. It’s like a personalized magazine or catalogue of everything you love—from fashion to travel to food. Because it’s so image-focused, Pinterest makes it easy to share your tastes with others (as long as you don’t mind them pinning your stuff!) as well as find new things that you might enjoy.
YouTube (6)
Youtube is a great way to begin building an audience as well as to increase your brand awareness. Youtube offers live streaming, video blogging and other very interesting ways to interact with your viewers. Twitter (6): Twitter allows you to keep up with friends, family and celebrities through short updates on events going on around you. Facebook (2): Facebook is an excellent tool for keeping in touch with people that already know you.