Facebook v/s Twitter

Facebook v/s Twitter

Any business being small or big uses social media channels to market their brand to the public online. But how do you go about choosing the right social media channels for your business? The internet today has been flushed with different kinds of social media channels, with Facebook and Twitter as the two most widely used social media networks in the world.

Between the two how do you identify which one is doing its job as a social media channel to direct clients to your brand? Perhaps what you should be asking first is what kind of brand you are.

It is because Twitter and Facebook are different and work in different ways. You must put in efforts into your social media channels whatever may be the result. This isn't just about updating your status; it's about your brand making promises to your client and ultimately a consumer relationship. Also must identify your target audience. Establish quickly what your brand means and who is interested in it. What motivates your client to use Facebook or Twitter or both?

Your brand is unique and will benefit from the social media channel. Facebook has the Pages option where you can create a company profile that looks neat, identical to your website if any and you can embed images and branding unlike Twitter. According to Mikal E. Belicove, social media strategist, messages embedded with images or also called as info graphics receive more attention. Facebook also provides the 'Like Button'. This tool helps create engagements with user with your company by sending updates from the page the client has liked, and broadcasts pages what friends have liked too.

Facebook also provides options of ads which your company can pay for and watch them work through analytics. With over 500 million users, an advert on Facebook is a powerful thing isn’t it?

If your business is time sensitive, than Twitter is a great option. Twitter deals in real time, with live updates that go out to all your followers instantly. Twitter also provides Promoted Tweets. This social tool is paid for on a Cost per Engagement (CPE) basis by companies who want their status to be boosted up a notch so that they become keywords that can be searched by search engines.

Choosing social media channels for a company is about who the brand is and who the client is. Respond to your followers and your Likes. Let clients know that you aren't a faceless brand but an interactive company that will listen and deliver. It's all about being a consistent user of social media channels in order to earn the benefits.

As the more widely known name, Facebook has opted for a traditional layout is a comfortable platform which most internet users find familiar. Facebook does have a live chat feature, but most user activity is done in a standard send and then wait for a reply fashion.

Twitter on the other hand has a more unique approach to messaging between members, you still get a static profile page, but where Twitter wins over Face book is in its active delivery of people's messages it is almost like a texting service.

• Twitter is not as well-known as Facebook, although this is changing. More people are familiar with Facebook and are already engaging with friends and family.

• Twitter has more outbound links than Facebook. Almost every Tweet (140 words character on Twitter) contains a link to a blog or website. People are tweeting about what they find interesting online. This makes it great for driving traffic to your landing pages.

• Twitter is an immediate response. You can post a question and get an immediate answer. By using hash tags (#), you can track responses to your inquiry. You are literally "tapping into collective notifications."

By using Twitter search tools, you can find current posts on any given topic. This is more difficult with Facebook, where you can post a question and people can comment on your question. This will keep all the responses together with the original question.

As a small business owner, I don't think it is one or the other, but both. There is a place for both social media sites. Twitter will help you keep a pulse on what is being said in your industry and Facebook will help you with that all important connection with your customers. Just set a schedule and stick to it. Don't get sucked into spending large chunks of time that could be better devoted to other areas of your business.