What is the Best Social Network in terms of ROI?
So many social networks - Linkedin, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+, etc. So little time. Which one do u think will give the best ROI for a small business with limited time and resources?
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Jul 11, 2019
The answer can vary depending on your target market's profile - age group, gender, preferences, etc. For example, if you're catering to businesses, then LinkedIn is the obvious choice as far as ROI and engagement are concerned. On the other hand, if you're targeting youth, then it would make sense to capitalize through channels like Instagram and Snapchat.
Generally, Pinterest, Youtube, and Facebook are the most commonly preferred channels in companies/industries I've worked with.
Hope this helps!
In case you'd like an overview of what type of content has been doing well on social media, feel free to check out this blog: https://www.tekrevol.com/blogs/6-social-media-marketing-trends-that-will-dominate-2019/
Jul 8, 2019
Every social network has its own charm and unique follower pattern.
- If you are a small business selling B2C products/services Facebook & Instagram can be a goldmine.
- Twitter has also been successfully harnessed by businesses both for the B2C and B2B market.
- LinkedIn gives the best ROI, if you can use the network to your advantage for B2B business, although paid advertising can be expensive. You may try targeted campaigns like Inmail with minimal monetization & derive better ROI.
- Pinterest is also a great platform if you can attract and engage your audience.
- If you have a great network & love keeping in touch with people you know, WhatsApp can be the surprise element!
Give a try and let me know what worked best for you.
Jan 16, 2014
It is entirely subjective and depends on your niche.
If your niche is visual (fashion, jewelry, food) and/or your primary target market is women - Pinterest or Instagram would work best.
If your niche is geared toward business owners or the job market, a LinkedIn campaign would make the most sense.
If you're selling creative or interesting products or are looking to get the attention of your local region, Facebook would work best.
If you're a reporter or writer, Twitter makes the most sense.
Dec 19, 2013
What a broad question!
Depends on your business. Buyers of nuclear power stations are unlikely to have your social media make a difference.
Depends on your knowledge. If you know about one platform far more than the others, that is likely to give a better return.
Depends on your market. Which ones do they use, when and how?
Depends on the supply. The big players are always pushing hard and the up-and-coming players innovating like mad. The picture is likely to be different tomorrow.
Depends on your partners. Who is also in your supply chain or helping it somehow and what do they use? A combined approach will be far more effective than you going out on a limb.
Subject to the above, here in the UK facebook and pinterest are presently best for retail, linked-in for "professional" contacts etc.
Good luck :)
Dec 29, 2013
Very helpful and stated in a way that made me think differently about what I'm doing - could anyone ask for more? Thanks John.
Dec 18, 2013
Yes, ROI is measured from many perspectives. Social engagement is one thing, sales conversion and growing actual profitable sales is another. An integrated approach that leverages powerful components, including social integration, is likely the most cost effective and performance oriented solution.
Dec 16, 2013
With so many social networking sites, its often hard to pinpoint each one. But if you are going to market something in a product way, you have to have your brand nailed down and be able to represent it accurately on these sites.
First, you can always hire someone to manage social networking sites for you- since you have so little time. And this can be a fairly cheap process- I'm a freelancer and I manage companies social media sites all the time. I might put in 2 hours a day for one company, or 2 hours a week for another. And for something as simple as posting blogs, or logging on to get more connections, that's adds up to about $12 an hour.
But, you're two best resources right now for free, to do yourself, is make sure your company has a Twitter and a Google+. A lot of people are against the whole twitter thing, but in reality, you don't have to post anything! Just find connections. Start following people you know, people in your area, businesses similar to you, etc. Google+ is similar to LinkedIn, but is an up-and-coming trend. You have circles in Google+, its basically a drawing board of who you are and what your brand is. More and more people are going to start to use it.
These are 2 tools that will work to your advantage, and no investment is required. But you do have to have at least the time to log on and see how your profiles progress.
Hope this helps! Good Luck!
Becky
Dec 16, 2013
Hi, first, what type of business do you work with? Each social media network is built differently. The effect it may have on your business ROI can vary. LinkedIn for example has been proven best for B2B, here you can connect with the business owners and decision makers of small to large scale companies. If you plan to sell products or services under this bracket, it may be the best one to use. Pinterest on the other hand can be used to sell directly to consumers as it uses a very visual approach to marketing. But it all depends really. If you can provide me with further info I'd be more than happy to help you find a match and perhaps conceptualize a strategy.
Best,
Moshe
Dec 16, 2013
Hi Moshe - thanx for the prompt response. Very helpful. I sell my ebooks about Pilates that include HD streaming video lessons. I share your experience with Linkedin. You and a previous respondant inspire me to focus more on Pinterest.
Dec 16, 2013
Odd that people are answering without any statistics and only opinions. Most of what has been said here is correct, but that doesn't give you any numbers to work with, which is what ROI is all about.
That being said, Pinterest and Facebook have the highest ROI for the majority of businesses.
If you have a product you can hawk on Pinterest visually then there is no competition. Consider the following:
- 80% of users are women and 50% have children (top consumer demographic)
- Pinterest is the 3rd highest trafficked social site in the US
- 43% of Pinterest members agree that they use Pinterest to “associate with retailers or brands with which I identify”, compared to just 24% of Facebook users who agree to the same use with Facebook.(source: Bizrate Insights )
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- Also in the Bizrate report, 70% of users say they are on Pinterest to get inspiration on what to buy. By contrast, only 17% use Facebook for the same.
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- 69% of online consumers who visit Pinterest have found an item they’ve purchased or wanted to purchase. This is compared with only 40% of online consumers who visit Facebook. (source: Bizrate Insights )
- A purchase resulting from an image click back to the source (your company's site) on Pinterest averages more than double the amount spent on Facebook or Twitter for the same
If you are selling a service that isn't easily advertised visually, Facebook may be the best answer, but there's important new information about that. You'll have to start spending some money to get your Facebook Page posts seen.
See the following on Facebook: http://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-screws-social-media-marketers-2013-12
Dec 16, 2013
Excellent and highly useful information Wally - many thanks. If u have a blog I'd like to follow it!
Dec 17, 2013
You're welcome Robert, glad you found it useful.
I don't maintain my own blog anymore, but I write for several sites regularly and you can find out more here http://about.me/wallypeterson.
Thanks again for the compliment!
Dec 15, 2013
Facebook right now seems to me to be the best ROI, but that is soon changing. It seems that social networks are ever changing and to stay up with the times these social networks should allow people to be more social. Limiting people with friends and networks seems to be a huge drawback to many social networks. That will need to change for them to remain on top.
Dec 13, 2013
I would first have to ask, "What's the "I" to which you are referring? Will you be purchasing ad space on these platforms, or will you utilize their free services? Time and money are both valuable, of course, but that would allow me to streamline the answer.
That said, I would encourage you to look at the social media market as three distinct classes of potential consumers: Share, Buy and Influence.
Those who spend the most time online are the SHARE class and, while invaluable for promoting your brand, they tend to have the least purchasing power. The BUY class have less direct social media exposure but will usually make a purchasing decision after multiple exposures to your brand via content sharing.
Your brand can then be exposed to the INFLUENCE class, typically via offline networking opportunities with the BUY class who have had direct contact with your brand. Fortunately, they have the potential to be primary clients for your business. Unfortunately, they take the longest amount of time to reach -- sometimes from three to six months.
Provided your messaging is sound and appropriate for your social media market, it can be quite frustrating at first converting "likes" to "income." That said, with a little patience and some idea of how the information flow works on social media platforms, your efforts will pay off over time.
Best of luck with your company, and have a safe and Happy New Year.
Dec 13, 2013
I would not feel comfortable giving you an answer without knowing the business you are in. For instance, Facebook can be great for businesses selling a lifestyle while pinterest for services selling an innovative fashion product. So it really depends. Feel free to let me know more and I will be happy to give you a complete answer!
Best,
rocco
Dec 12, 2013
For a lot of Social Media the purpose is not to earn profits directly from it but to have better customer relations and feedback to improve your business. To better understand what they want and to build an awareness of you and your business.
If you want a direct customer lead and sales approach out of it then it would depend on your business. Twitter is way better for fast businesses or ones that move like food trucks around town. LinkedIn is better for B2B relations. Pinterest is great for visual products like bakeries and clothing stores. Facebook is good for general use and Google+ is kinda hard to define to a business but has it's strong parts with websites.
Dec 12, 2013
With limited time, that can create a challenge since it takes time and effort to build relationships that may lead to sales with social media.
As far as ROI... any one of those can work and any one of those can fail, it depends on what is best suited for you, your business and how much effort you put into it. As with all marketing, understanding your target market, your marketing options and what it takes to be effective will determine how successful it is more so then picking a marketing option based someone else claiming success with it.
Thanks mark - makes a lot of sense.