Social media marketing can be very tough. Not only does it take a lot of time, if you do it incorrectly you won’t see any results. This is especially true if only one person is handling social media, as it is hard to keep up with multiple social networking sites on your own. If you had to devote your time to either Facebook or Twitter, which should you choose?
Despite both being incredibly popular social networking websites, Facebook and Twitter deliver information in very different ways, and serve a completely different market. Before we can truly compare which would be better to reach potential customers, we have to take a look at the typical Facebook and Twitter user, and how they use each website differently.
Let’s start off with the world’s most popular social network, Facebook. A typical Facebook user has one profile, and uses it to add and keep track of close friends and family. They will also like pages related to their interests, or products/businesses they really enjoy or appreciate.
Now let’s look at Twitter. Twitter is a microblogging website that is limited to 140 characters per tweet. Tweets are short, and there is usually a lot more of them. A typical twitter user may have multiple accounts, with different themes to them that portray a different set of interests. These users often follow many more accounts, often following anything they have even a slight interest in.
Due to the nature of each social networking platform, it is significantly easier to get followers on Twitter than it is to get a like to your page on Facebook. However, this is almost like a catch-22, because a single Twitter follower is not nearly as valuable to you as a business as a Facebook like. Because Twitter user’s feeds are so flooded with many different people or companies sending out Tweets, the chance of a single tweet of yours being seen is very little.
However, your message does have a chance of being seen by more people due to the popularity of Twitter’s search function, which is something that Facebook essentially lacks (although this has become less of an issue since the introduction of Facebook trends). The use of proper hashtags can increase virality of a Twitter by extraordinary levels, something that isn’t yet possible. This makes it a lot easier to find new customers, and expose your brand to people who have never seen it before.
However, because Facebook users follow significantly less accounts, the chance of your messages being seen by a Facebook user is significantly higher. Unlike Twitter, Facebook also does not have a character limit for messages, which means it is a lot easier to engage and fully deliver a detailed message to people that have liked your page. This makes Facebook a better platform for people who have already been customers to your business, as it allows you to connect with them further, encouraging them to purchase through you or visit your website again.
So, is Facebook or Twitter better for business? In the end, it all really comes down to what you’re looking to get out of social media. If you’re looking to attract new potential visitors or customers, Twitter will often be the better choice. If you’re looking to bring visitors back to your website, you’ll find Facebook will do a much better job.
If you’re hesitant, try them both out to see which social networking site works better for you. You’ll thank me later.