What social media platforms are most popular among entrepreneur and startup communities?
What SM networks do entrepreneurs and founders pay most attention to and have most interaction on? Twitter, Facebook, Google +, Pinterest or LinkedIn?
For me, I look at the big four. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.
Google+ as a business tool is completely useless as far as i am concerned.
A blog is also very good, however the one issue with a blog is always "Do I have the time?"
Blogging is very time consuming and a successful blog need to be constantly updating its articles or the blog becomes stale.
We are in the age of instant gratification due to technology. Not updating a blog for even just a couple of days can be a killer.
It really depends on what the business is selling. A good rule of thumb is that if you are a b to b (Business to Business) company, LinkedIn will be most valuable. That is because you will be able to target your marketing based on job title, not just interests and likes. If you are a B to C company, Facebook is the way to go, because you can target your consumers based on interests. Pintrest is the fastest growing social network, and is largely female, and entertainment oriented so again retail businesses might do best there. Twitter is generally for the under 30's, so if your product appeals to a very young demographic, that's a great option
I use Hoot Suite. It allows me to schedule and manage posts on all my platforms (LinkedIn, FB, twitter, etc.)
LinkedIn is the first. Then if you are looking at forums, Quora and Mosaic Hub
A lot depends on the type of business, and who your audience is. Facebook leads in customer interaction for all of my businesses, but Pinterest for example, is great for my Tie company. Blogs as well have done wonders for SEO and customer engagement. LinkedIn and Twitter have their small niches, and Google+... well, it's there...
For me LinkedIn is far and way the most fruitful. StumbleUpon gives us our best PPC performance on a click vs cost basis.
I think most business owners DON'T know and they try most or all of them! The problem with "trying" social media is thinking that "doing" SM will get you business. You first have to find out where your targeted market is, then see if they are using it to contact brands (Facebook as an example: if you are 30 something your probably using it to stock your ex - if your 40 something you are probably connecting w/ high school buds) So the platforms are only as good as a marketing platform if your target market is using it to connect with you or your product or services.
LinkedIn by far. Then you cross reference with your Facebook - G+ network to understand the individual/organisation you are targeting. Kickstarter and Indiegogo are the most utilized for crowd funding.
LinkedIn for absolutely professional reasons. Facebook to complete exchanges (information, happenings, etc.) that are not easy to be done on LI.
There are plenty:
- Xing
- Biznik
- Go Big Network
and many others,
here is a list:
http://www.practicalecommerce.com/articles/2932-18-Social-Networks-for-Entrepreneurs
I encourage my start-up clients to actively engage in Twitter from the get-go. It allows them to seek out and interact with potential consumers that may be already talking about their brand, or the industry the particular start-up is looking to have an impact on.
epowerhouse is designed for startup communities and is a social network that helps entrepreneurs. www.e-phouse.com.
Great point. I love Hootsuite, it is the social media time saver.