Which Social media to adopt for your business?

Social media optimization (SMO) is a term many businesses are not familiar with. While one school of thought feels that social media is not understood properly by them, there is also a little-known factoid that for some businesses, social media could reap in rich benefits, particularly if search engine marketing (SEM) and SMO are harnessed effectively.

However, with the high number of social media on the horizon today, which one do you choose from, for your business?

There are a number of social media tools you can choose from, such as networking sites or blogs and microblogs. Each one has its own pros and cons. You can begin with analyzing your own requirements. Typical requirements include:

• Communication with clients
• Relevant customer engagement
• Resolving issues, if any, in a timely and satisfactory manner

Using Facebook

By far, Facebook is one of the most popular platforms for communication. Its applications allow for engagement and interaction – two of the most-needed qualities in any media platform. Facebook is also a good medium for publicity through SMO, since it provides an excellent forum for contextual advertising.

Irrespective of the nature of your services – whether you are a B2B provider, or a B2C provider, the significance of thorough communication can never be overemphasized. With Facebook, you can engage in meaningful customer dialogues, where your customer communicates with you clearly and openly about his or her expectations. It is an effective platform for meaningful engagement and, eventually, effective SEM.

Using Networking Sites

LinkedIn is an example of a networking site, and works very well as a networking and public relations (PR) tool. Because LinkedIn is limited in the sense that it does not allow for conversations and dialogues, it acts ideally as a tool for broadcasting while still inviting opinion.

Your clients may also utilize LinkedIn for referrals. Conversely, if you describe your service offerings on your LinkedIn page there is a likelihood that your clients' contacts will also look up your work, thus becoming your potential clients. Investing some time in research and contextual advertising can help boost your marketing and social media optimization efforts and as well.

Using a Microblog

Twitter is a good example of a microblog. However, as with the microblog structure, the most you can do with Twitter is make a mention, and going ahead, build a story out of the mentions. However, if your customers are not comfortable using the medium, the platform for communication gets limited severely. However, for someone interested in furthering business interests, Twitter can also become part of your SEM strategies.

But an effectively worded text can help draw attention to your problem. This quality has been used by customers to voice their complaints or unhappiness with a particular service or company. Keeping this in mind then, you can choose to use your Twitter account as a forum to talk with your clients and tap into their grievances as well.