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We live in a social media rich world. This means the best way to reach people is creating accounts they can constantly follow and keep up with. Not only will your clients follow your brand, but you can follow them too. Its important to keep up with what your users are interested in so you know what they want to see next. The best part about social media is that if you have an Internet connection and a computer, you can participate. You can do a lot with just a little bit of budget. For small businesses just staring in marketing, social media is an easy and affordable way to get your foot in the door. This doesn’t mean your brand has to have an account with every social network out there. Start out simple, the top 10 social media sites are listed below.

1. Facebook

Facebook is a popular and free social networking site where users create profiles, upload photos and videos, send messages and keep in touch with friends, family and colleagues. A Facebook page is a great way to get your name out there. You can reach thousands of people just by getting a like or share on your posts. Facebook is a good way to reach anyone, the age range varies.

2. Google+

Google+ is considered the second most used social media platform. The activity seen on your Google+ profile directly effects your search results. Every interaction including comments, shares, and reviews, all add up to a major factor in how Google measures your site’s relevancy. If you have an active website, with a proper Google Local listing, google says that your site is trustworthy in consistent engagement. Google plus is a site to use if you’re targeting more people in the IT world. More than half of it’s users are IT workers.

3. Twitter

Twitter is a great way to connect with your users. So many people contact businesses by tweeting at them or finding their page. It’s their way of finding out whats happening with your brand right now. For new businesses, Twitter is a good start because it’s a gateway to discovering everything new and now. Most of Twitters users are between the ages of 16 and 30, so if you’re trying to reach a younger group of users this is a good place to start.

3. LinkedIn

LinkedIn is great for networking that may be related to connecting with other professionals in your industry. In addition to joining existing groups, you can also launch your own group, representing business colleagues, customers, clients or just people with a shared interest. Groups are a good way to network with a collection of like-minded individuals. Use LinkedIn if your focus is around business networking.

5. YouTube

The prime focus of advertisement has shifted from television to computer screens. The best part about advertising with YouTube is increasing your brand visibility. With such a huge number of views everyday YouTube is the best site to run an ad campaign. You have multiple options available when it comes to the kind of advertising campaign you want to run. You can use one of the several marketing programs or you can use the video target tool to place your ads. People are more likely to remember your brand if they physically see it. YouTube is good for reaching a lot of different age groups because the users go to YouTube to get a visual representation of what they’re searching for.

6. Instagram

With the growth that Instagram has experienced since it was launched in 2010, it is quickly establishing itself as one of the big social media sites. Similar to YouTube, Instagram gives you the opportunity to increase your brand visibility with advertising. Using Instagram allows you to engage with your audience and create fun, exciting content that will keep drawing your users in. Most of it’s users are younger, so this is a good place to start if you’re focusing on a younger audience.

7. Pinterest

Pinterest is an online visual tool that allows users to discover things that inspire them, things they want to do, see or buy and sometimes even things they didn’t know they were looking for. Pinterest isn’t for everyone, but if you can utilize it then its a great way to put your name out there. New brands and businesses are discovered every day with a new pin on Pinterest. This is a good place to reach women, more than half of the users are female.

8. Tumblr

Tumblr is a blogging platform that allows users to post text, images, videos, links, quotes and audio to their Tumblr blog. Tumblr’s audience is young and smart and seriously engaged in social media activity. Any brand or company who wants to reach teens or millennials can not ignore Tumblr’s target audience.

9. Vine

Vine is a video-sharing app designed in a way for you to film short, separate videos that can be linked together for a total of six seconds. Each short film plays in a continuous loop. Vine has changed the way marketing teams look at video, expanding the options and reducing the overheads. Visual content significantly boosts content marketing success, and Vine is a great way to start. Vine is focused on a younger audience.

10. Snapchat

Snapchat is a newer app that allows you to send videos and pictures, both of which will self destruct no more than ten seconds after the user views them. It sounds pointless – sending a well-thought picture for marketing, only for it to disappear after a few seconds, but snapchat is great for any company that wants to deliver live content. The posts on snapchat continue to stay fresh because they disappear after a certain amount of time. Snapchat is a great way to reach younger audiences and children usually between the ages of ten and 25.

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