Why are social networks important in business?

The emergence of social networks has come to change the way in which companies interact with their customers, allowing a more direct and rapid communication, as well as advertising or marketing strategies that they put into practice. To this is added the much lower cost of using social networks to advertise, than doing it by traditional means such as radio and television.

For all the above, and for many other things, no one doubts the beneficial role of social networks in business .

Some important statistical data

There are several studies that have been done, with respect to social networks, these are some of the results about their users:

• 84% of internet users access social networks.
• 27% of the time on the internet they use it on social networks.
• 74% of users of social networks think that these are a means of trust to turn to when they want to make a decision about the purchase of a product or service.
• 60% of consumers interact with, at least, one brand on social networks.

With regard to companies:

• 91% of companies use social networks to make content marketing.
• 64% use them to investigate the state of markets and competition.
• 50% of the companies that use social networks say that they have helped their sales to increase.
• 52% of companies say that social networks have helped them attract new customers.

On the other hand, the social networks most used by businesses are Twitter, especially in the technology and software sector, and LinkedIn, when professional services and marketing are offered; although we must not leave out Facebook and Pinterest, which have a large number of users.

Each social network with its own advantages

All of the above leads me to the need to answer another question. What social network should you use? There is no single answer to this, since it will depend on your target audience, the objective of your company, the sector to which it belongs and your resources, among other things.

Here I will talk about the most popular social networks in business, their advantages and uses, which are five: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest and YouTube.

Facebook , with the largest audience

It is estimated that, to date, Facebook has more than 800 million active users, from different parts of the world, and from different age groups. Being on Facebook means being able to reach a large number of people. Among its uses are:

• Interact dynamically with your customers.
• Build a brand
• Get feedback on the company and the products and services it offers.

Twitter , to generate interactions

The number of users is less than that of Facebook but, with its more than 200 million active users, it is not a negligible amount either.

Its main purpose is to generate interactions between companies and their clients, however, it can also serve to know the trends of a sector, answer questions, know what the competition is doing, etc.

LinkedIn , for professional services

To date, it has about 135 million active users, all of them professionals who seek to connect with each other. Taking into account this, its main uses are:

• Find new customers
• Create beneficial relationships for the company, or the professional.
• Make a company known

Pinterest , publicize your products

This social network, which allows you to share images and even videos, receives, approximately, more than 75 million unique visits per month. It can be used to:

• Introduce products and services, through creative and eye-catching photographs.
• Generate commitment to the brand.
• Increase sales.

YouTube , provide information

YouTube is considered as the social network with the highest number of unique visits per month, we are talking about 800 million visits.

When it comes to using YouTube for business, it highlights the tutorials and video-blogs, as well as the videos that show the benefits that a service or product can entail.

In conclusion, why should your business be on social networks?

• Most people search on social networks, among them are probably your potential customers.
• People want to follow their favorite brands on social networks.
• You can get a lot of valuable information about the perception of the brand.
• Improve communication with your customers.

These are just some of the reasons why you should have a presence in one of the social networks, right now. But remember, that all these benefits require having people interested in your brand connected to it, so do not be fooled by so many websites and people who only engage in the buying and selling of followers that are not related to your company .