If you’ve been working on your social media presence lately, you’ve probably set up at least a Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn account. These platforms tend to steal the spotlight when it comes to social media. But there are many other social network platforms out there. Even though they’re quite popular among users, most businesses tend to overlook them. This is why they can be a real goldmine for a small business looking to promote its brand. A smaller platform sometimes mean a more engaged audience.
Just because these platforms are not as competitive as the more popular ones, that doesn’t mean your success is guaranteed. [pullquote]There are many ways you can fail with your social media strategy if you’re not careful.[/pullquote]
As the name implies, the website focuses on users asking questions, and others answering them. The concept behind Ask.fm is quite straightforward, and this is probably why so many people use it. There are now about 150 million people using the platform.
You can use it to resolve question-related to your field, and establish yourself as somewhat of an expert on the subject. You can also use Ask.fm to ask questions yourself, and establish a relationship with your audience based on common interests.
It would be unfair to say that Myspace is a lesser known social network. Myspace used to be the number one social networking platform until Facebook stole its thunder. Myspace deserves a spot on this list because, even though it’s not as popular as it used to be, it still has over 50 million users, and might very well make a comeback. And because it is perceived as being less popular, competition isn’t as fierce when it comes to marketing.
A few years back, Hi5 used to be just as popular as Facebook all throughout the world. In the US, it started to lose some of its popularity, but it’s still going strong in Asia and Africa. It can be a great way to reach out to an untapped market, and connect with people half way across the world.
Buzznet is a social media platform that focuses mostly on music and popular culture. Businesses don’t really use it in their marketing strategies because it seems to have a rather narrow appeal. But with a little bit of ingenuity, you can reach out to a whole new community. And popular culture is a broad enough area that you’re bound to find a way in.
A popular take on YouTube, YouNow is a live streaming platform. Its audience is quite diverse. Users are encouraged to ask questions and engage with the people who are doing the live stream. It’s a very personal, immediate way of connecting with people. It can give your business the opportunity to humanize your brand, and bring closer to your audience. Plus, you can benefit from the instant feedback you get, and really start a conversation with your potential customers. It’s also a great alternative to Facetime, the popular chat app.
Twitch is somewhat similar to Youknow. It’s also a live stream platform. It also allows you to live stream your computer screen. This makes it very popular in the gaming community, where let’s plays are becoming increasingly popular. Let’s plays basically involves the content creator playing a video game, and uploading his experience on the net. With Twitch, players and their audience can go through this experience together. Twitch can also be used to make tutorials or other informative videos. Your experts can answer audience’s question as they develop, and interact with users in real time.
As a video networking platform, Vine has basically generated a new content format. Vines are short, 6-second video clips, set on a loop. Part of what makes vines so appealing is the fact that the format is so restrictive. You really have to be very creative to make it work. But once you do, you have a great chance at creating viral content, because vines are so incredibly easy to watch and share.
About.me is like a social media platform for social media platforms. It helps you bring all of your different pages together in one place, and share them with your audience. For a small business, it can be a very effective way of making the most out of their social media presence. It can really help your customers see your brand as one, coherent image, and get to know what you’re all about.
This platform brings together user reviews and helps businesses address customer feedback. Many small companies might be tempted to overlook Yelp’s great potential as brand enhancing tool. Dealing with customer feedback, especially when it comes to negative reviews, can be a great way to show your customer you genuinely care about them, and their needs. Plus, studies show 67% of consumers are influenced by online reviews. Making your presence known on Yelp can help you manage those reviews.
Quora is a questions-and-answers platform that lets you sync your page with your Facebook or Google+ accounts. It a good place to establish your brand as an approachable and professional expert in its field. It’s much more focused than a regular social platform, which can give you a good chance to steer your marketing campaign in the direction you want it to go.
With over 3 billion people connected to the internet and nearly 2 billion engaged with some social network platform, there’s a whole world of untapped potential out there. Only by exploring this vast array of possibilities can you hope to make the most out of your social media marketing strategy.
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