Understanding Your Target Audience with Social Media Advertising
In today’s society, social media is growing and businesses must keep up with new trends to reach their target consumers. According to statista.com, 78 percent of people in the United States have at least one social network profile and that number is expected to increase next year. Social media advertising is beginning to dominate the marketing industry and businesses must have a presence on one or more social media platform depending on their target audience.
Every business needs to identify their target audience to be successful on social media channels. Understanding your customer is important because not everyone uses social media in the same way and for the same things. For example, businesses should use different strategies for targeting millennials than middle aged consumers and companies must understand how to engage different groups when advertising on social media.
There are many factors that go into targeting a specific audience. Working with an online marketing agency can help you find your target audience by determining what social media platforms should be used, times of day to post, and tone of voice.
Social Media Advertising Platforms
There are many social media platforms that are used for advertising. These platforms include Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Linkedin, Snapchat, and Pinterest. More millennials use platforms such as Instagram and Snapchat so a company that is targeting millennials must have a presence on those social media sites to keep their clients engaged. There have been reports showing that Facebook is losing some of their younger audience, skewing the age range to be older. Therefore, companies that are aiming to advertise for ages forty to sixty should put a heavy emphasis on Facebook.
Time of Day
The time of day a company posts on social media platforms can increase traffic to their pages. Because different audiences are on social media at different times of the day, companies have to identify when their target audience is active on social media. For example, a gardener should advertise on social media in the afternoon when parents and homeowners are on social media. A gardener should not post late at night when the social media world is dominated by millennials who are most likely not homeowners and not interested in finding a gardener.
Tone of Voice
Different people respond to different forms of language and voice. When advertising to elders, businesses should use a professional tone of voice and state all of the logistics to attract elders. However, when advertising to millennials, businesses should use a much more laid back tone, state only the most important information, and mention how their product can benefit them. Millennials like to make decisions quickly while taking into account what the majority of the population has and elders prefer to make well informed decisions.
Finding a balance between the various social media platforms, peak times of day for your audience, and tone of voice can be difficult but finding this balance can grow your business. Targeting the correct audience plays an important role in the success of any business and utilizing a social media advertising agency can help.
Author: Alyssa Perel
Alyssa is currently pursuing a degree in Media Studies with a minor in Marketing at San Diego State University. Her interest in social media and marketing has grown vastly over the years and she enjoys discovering new things about this field every day. You can connect with Alyssa via Facebook and Instagram @aperel.
