According to The Global State of Digital, social networks already move or connect 3.484 billion people worldwide, representing 45% of the world’s population.
Given this scenario, it is impossible to ignore the importance that social networks have assumed for marketing strategies. Companies manage to gain visibility and brand recognition through these channels, build relationships, work on brand positioning, sell more, etc.
Being on the social networks your customers are on is essential! People want to see and engage with brands in different ways, being able to connect with them through direct messages and comments on posts, for example.
What Types Of Social Networks?
Do you think that all social networks are designed with the same objective? There are different types of social networks, and here we will highlight the four main ones:
Relationship Social Network
When you think of social networks, these should be the ones that immediately come to mind. After all, they are the most used, like Facebook and Instagram. And their main objective is to bring people together and create a bond between them. That is, the relationship between users is who will dictate the movement on the network.
The preference for the contact between people is such that the Facebook and Instagram algorithms privilege content made by personal profiles, according to the platforms themselves.
Entertainment Social Network
In these social networks, the focus is on disseminating content, which is the introductory offer of the platform. The relationship happens but in the background. A great example is YouTube, where users publish exclusive content on their respective channels to entertain the public and gain new viewers.
Professional Social Network
When we talk about a social network whose primary focus is the professional life of its users, the first example that comes to mind for many people is LinkedIn. In these networks, users make their resumes available, publish articles and research, talk about their area of expertise and get job opportunities. Companies also use this social network to be able to recruit new talent, meet new professionals and invite them to interviews.
Niche Social Network
Another social networking model is focused on specific niches. They are networks shaped to talk about a segment aimed at particular audiences.
TripAdvisor is a good example! The digital platform creates content that addresses the areas of tourism and gastronomy, inviting users to check out travel tips, evaluations of spaces and environments, and feedback on the establishments visited.
What Are The Main Social Networks And Their Characteristics?
Now that you know each of the types of social networks, check out the ones that stand out in the world by the number of active users.
Facebook is one of the most used social media platforms in the world. According to data from the social network itself, there are about 2.6 billion active users per month.
The social network aims to “give people the power to create communities and bring individuals from around the world together. People use Facebook to stay in touch with friends and family, find out what’s going on globally, and share and express what’s important to them .”
But, even with this focus on the interaction between people, with so many people there, there’s no way to leave Facebook aside in any digital marketing strategy, is there? Facebook has specific resources for companies, and to have them, it is necessary to create a “Fan Page”.
With the page, you have access to the Facebook Business Manager, with tools such as :
- Facebook Analytics ;
- Facebook Retargeting ;
- Facebook Ads ;
- Facebook Insights.
With these resources, it is possible to achieve the marketing campaign’s objectives, transforming the social network not only into a relationship tool but also a business tool!
Instagram is one of the relationship platforms that has grown sharply in recent years; the number of active users is 1 billion worldwide. They all share photos of their daily lives on feed, Stories or Reels.
Because it is a space with so many people, brands began to gain freedom and tools to do Business within the platform. Instagram Shopping is an example; with it, you can make sales through Stories, present your store in the “explore” tab, create reminders for new product launches and much more.
And if you’re not going to use Instagram Shopping, there are many other ways to leverage Instagram within your marketing strategy, such as Instagram Ads.
Twitter currently has 166 million active users. Its slogan is “see what is happening in the world now”.
As it is an easy-to-use platform, it can interact with users in real-time, giving agility to the flow of information in your timeline. The messages — called tweets — are written in 280 characters, addressing a topic currently in the spotlight in the world or something very personal.
The social network has become a space used by artists, writers, singers, influencers and brands. All are browsing the topics of the moment — called Trending Topics. The relationship network also offers mechanisms and resources for brands. Twitter for Business offers functions that help you know your followers better through Twitter Analytics and Twitter Ads.