New Entrepreneur with No Money: Part 3
Warning: LONG POST – There’s a lot of networks to cover here (6 to be exact.) If you want to learn in detail what most of these networks are about, keep reading.
If you want a quick list of it and decide if each is for you, click here or scroll down.
Remember when you first got on Twitter? Maybe you’d been on Facebook for a while, so you were used to keeping track of friends and family members. You’d have long conversations in threads that would go on for pages. Then you joined Twitter and it was very different. You had to say what you wanted in 140 characters or less. Then people started using #hashtags and you wondered what they were doing. No one used hashtags on Facebook. And if you were like me, you noticed you quickly started being “followed” (not “friended”) by people you didn’t know?
I have often been an early adopter of new technology and social platforms. I like to explore things before everyone else has figured it out or possibly had a chance to destroy it. Twitter taught me a lot about getting to my point faster. Even in conversations, I’d make my points quicker because I learned to “think in tweets.”
That worked for me. I could be funnier because I had to be more creative with fewer words. And I’d built a reputation as a funny guy.
Then Instagram came along, and it didn’t matter what the words were, it was all about the photos!
LinkedIn became the social media for business, but no one I ever communicated with was on there… Unless they were looking for a job.
So Many Social Networks!
Now, there are so many social networks that have come and gone. Some don’t describe themselves as social networks (YouTube is often categorized as a Video Service and categorized with other video services like Netflix or Hulu. And LinkedIn is categorized as a business tool.) but because they all thrive on a social and community platform, so I would definitely count them as social networks, even though my iPhone doesn’t automatically sort them that way.
It can be confusing to know how to set yourself online when there are so many platforms. You see some businesses that are on EVERYTHING. A thriving Facebook Page where they do giveaways, a YouTube channel with millions of views, an Instagram profile with half-a-million followers, and a Pinterest Board where they’ve been pinned by millions of people. Who has time to update all of these networks? And how do you even learn how to use them correctly, when they all do different things?
For This Article, Let’s Look at 5 of the Most Popular Social Networks You Should Consider
Read Part 1: Making a Plan >>
Read Part 2: Create Content with a Blog, YouTube Channel, or Podcast >>
And since we already did an article about why you might do well to start a YouTube channel, we’ll skip over this one here in case you’re already on a path to using it.
We’ll start with Facebook, since it’s by far the most commonly used and most popular website in the world. Everyday, millions of people join the network for the first time, and billions use it nearly every day. Chances are, 4 out of 5 people you know are on Facebook. And you lose sleep over why that 1 that isn’t doesn’t get on there.
Facebook works because it’s so doggone EASY! You just say what you want to say, or you just read your feed of what everyone is up to and what they think about every little thing in the known universe. It is, without a doubt, the network we think of first when trying to connect or reconnect with someone we know in real life. A friend, family member, or co-worker would be most likely to be on Facebook, and they’d likely be more personable and real on there than anything else. (This is what we often think, not the way it is.)
And yet, when you suddenly become a business tycoon or join a multi-level marketing program and have a mission to recruit everyone you know, you quickly lose friends or – worse – become blocked by them. People don’t get on Facebook to see ads or to purchase the essential oils they didn’t know they needed.
Facebook Pages and Groups
Pages
But people DO like pages of companies, movies, musicians, and apps that they love. A page doesn’t always show up in their news feed, but if it’s a page that offers a lot of insight or funny things or interactivity, it has a much higher chance of showing up, and may be visited by those people much more.
Groups
Groups is another popular feature of Facebook that has gained much more popularity in recent years than Pages. A group is where people come together to talk to other people who are passionate about the very same things.
Which one should you choose?
Whether you choose to create a Facebook Page or Group depends on what your end goal of your project is. If you’ve created a product and you’re wanting to update continual information about that product, you’re going to want a page. People will likely not be spinning threads of 100+ comments about how passionate they are about your new and improved hacky sack. So, instead of just trying to make them talk about something they likely wouldn’t want to talk about so much, make the page interactive. Have giveaways, contests, ask questions.
But if you’re wanting to connect with people because the IDEA of what you do appeals to them, and that IDEA sparks a lot of conversation, you might consider a group. A group by its very name is interactive. It’s all about what is best for the group. And meeting new people and learning from them as much as they learn from you.
Next on our list is Twitter. Twitter is currently the President’s favorite communication tool and that may have made it far less cool than it used to be. But there are still millions and millions of Twitter users. And in my experience, Twitter is the tool almost everyone needs. Yes, it now allows you to do pretty much what Facebook does with Images, Live Feeds, GIFs, and longer fields to tweet in. But it still cuts you off after 280 characters, and tends to load more linearly than Facebook does. And because Twitter is generally used more for promotional purposes and platform purposes, it tends to do the best for businesses, musicians, artists, and celebrities.
If you’re starting a company or blog or digital tool, you don’t need me to tell you that you’ll probably want to be on Twitter. The Search feature and the hashtag feature (created here) are fantastic tools to have when connecting with new people.
And connecting with new people is what Twitter is all about (like Instagram, which we’ll cover in a bit). Ever get friend-requested on Facebook by someone you don’t know? You feel a little creepy. Not as much on Twitter. It’s more about exploring other tweeters who tweet about the things you like to tweet about. And that can be more eyes for you. Plus, Twitter users aren’t usually as quiet about their personal profiles as Facebook users are, so when you get retweeted or a post is liked, the rest of Twitter could possibly see it.
I told you we’d get to Instagram, and here we are. If Twitter is the social network for what people have to see, Instagram is the network for what it looks like! Or what you look like when you say it.
Since its inception in 2011, Instagram has become the most popular photo site in the world, blowing away sites like Flickr and other photo blogs that none of us remember. Within 2 years, Instagram did to Flickr what Facebook had done to MySpace. The filters that came preloaded with it allowed users to take Polaroid-style photos or have slight sepia-toned images that looked vintage and made their pics stand out. Now, with Stories and the new IG TV (which is like a cross between Periscope (Twitter’s live video company) and YouTube, it provides more filters, more ways to connect, and it can be tricky to figure out whether you should be posting stories, posts, or videos.
Start by posting photos and videos to your profile. And this means you’ll need to get very creative with daily pictures of what you do or who you are. Instagram is all about capturing authentic-looking moments. Certainly not everyone on Instagram IS authentic, but they have to appear that way.
Once you start following people who are into the same things you are and the very thing you’re trying to promote, and once they start following you, then experiment with stories. The stories are Instagram’s way of showing a series of interactive and related events like Snapchat (another one we’ll get to). It will relate far more to younger people than regular photos do, while artists and photographers will be more drawn to the photos on your profile more.
(One day we will do much more on each of these networks, but this is just a snapshot – no pun intended.)
Snapchat
Snapchat is one of the newer entries to the social media world. When it was first released, it was a “society has gone too far” for parents across the world as it was seen as a chat app that instantly deleted messages and pics so that there was no digital trail for jealous spouses or parents to follow. While those features still exist (albeit with better privacy safeguards), it has morphed in recent years into a social camera app that allows teens and young adults to apply filters that change their faces into cartoon cats, fairies, and other woodland fantasy creatures and send social “streaks” to their friends, where they post at least one pic a day and try to beat each other’s records.
It is also the most commonly-used app for teens and twentysomethings and brands use it. Snapchat created the “story” craze that is now adopted by Instagram and Facebook, and influencers and brands spread thousands of interactive messages and ads daily.
If you don’t understand the interface, you’re not alone. Snapchat is like a digital fidget cube, with one swipe opening the camera, a different one showing your camera roll, a third one showing you all the stories of the friends and brands you follow, and buttons in odd places that show you who your friends are, who you need to invite, and a whole bunch more quirky features. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll be posting pics of yourself looking like Bambi if that’s your thing.
Bottom line is, if you want to reach young people, Snapchat is where you need to be.
Did you know recent data and analytics show that Pinterest is the third most-used search engine on the Internet? This makes it the number two most popular search engine since the second-most-used one is YouTube which is owned by the ultimate search engine, which I don’t need to even name because you already know.
If you are a blogger – especially if you blog about fashion, food, romance, or parenting – you need to be pinning your posts to Pinterest constantly. While other social networks on this list are about who you know and who you can connect with, Pinterest is all about what fascinates you. What are your biggest passions in life. If it’s food, millions of users pin any recipe you could ever want to cook. If it’s fashion, Pinterest acts as a virtual styleguide for every look you would want to pull off. If it’s graphic design, Pinterest has you covered as well.
One common misconception is that Pinterest is a “women’s only” club. The truth is, there are loads of men on the app or site and boards filled with pins of sports, cars, tech gadgets, and anything else you’d associate with being a guy (You sexist pig, you!).
The only real difference in this network is that, while you CAN comment and reply and build dialogue with other pinners, this feature isn’t nearly as used as the other networks, and instead is more about repinning others’ pins because you like the same stuff. However, even if you’re not communicating constantly on Pinterest, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be on here. This place gets eyeballs, and eyeballs are what you want. ESPECIALLY since the eyes looking at your stuff are truly people who WANT to see what you’ve pinned.
To pin your own content, you’re going to want to make it visual, like Instagram, but with the ability to link to any of your content you want.
Don’t Forget LinkedIn… But Don’t Spend Hours Here
I almost didn’t mention LinkedIn. Almost. LinkedIn started out as a boring-looking accountant-styled job site that just happened to connect people from one business to another, linking you to your colleagues and business acquaintances across the world. This was fine, but it didn’t allow you to branch out and get to know business people you didn’t know, instead opting to SELL you additional features like the ability to message people out of your network for a monthly premium fee.
In the last ten years, LinkedIn has come a long way, and is still one of the best ways to connect with potential employers or employees. Its once-clunky interface has now turned into a simple experience that almost completely resembles Facebook. Messaging is easy, adding people you may know is easy. And it is now used by business leaders and professionals to publish articles and video links to help and inspire other professionals.
The only real problem is that most people, if they DO have a profile, rarely use it. Sure, there are always the handful of die-hard business people, but the majority of users have unfinished or non-updated resumes and if you do message someone, don’t expect them to see it or respond for weeks. LinkedIn still keeps trudging along, but even its job-seeking asset that made it so popular has been passed by with the likes of new start-ups like ZipRecruiter (who sponsors nearly every hit podcast you listen to, by the way).
So, to Sum Up…
If you wanted a quick list of the most popular social networks and why you might consider or ignore them based on your business strategy, this is it:
- Facebook:
- Easily the most popular social website on earth. You need to be represented here. Create a Page if you want to control the content and build a following; Create a Group if you want to build slow and organic connections with like-minded people.
- Twitter
- 2nd most popular social network. Easiest network to link to blog posts, websites, and share quick quotes and thoughts. If you want a platform to say something, be here.
- Instagram
- All about the Photos and quickly becoming more about short videos, interactive stories, and live streaming. VERY popular with teens and young adults. If you do anything visual, use Instagram.
- Snapchat
- All the rage among teens and twentysomethings. They are nearly the only ones using this everyday, but they use it a lot and they are loyal. If you have something trendy or vintage and want to market to this crowd, learn to snap and look like a cartoon.
- Pinterest
- A must-have network for bloggers and communicators. Simple to use, and while it has millions of men and women, you will get much more engagement from women between ages 30-50. And they get lots of traffic to their sites and products and posts. Get to know them.
- LinkedIn
- This can work for you but only if your main goal is to recruit people or connect and influence other leaders or business people. Virtually no younger people here, and largely a male business culture. (Not critiquing, just going by my own experience.)
What do you think? Leave a comment to let us know.
Do you have experiences connecting with users on this platform? What was your experience? Leave a comment and share with us below.