The best marketing strategies for different social media channels

Your company's social media marketing strategy can't be a one-size-fits-all approach. It has to take into account the platforms you're engaging with, and the kind of content that performs best on each platform.

Facebook is by far the biggest social media network, and it's one that's most used by businesses. 98% of B2C businesses use Facebook, while 89% of B2B businesses use it.

Facebook users are twice as likely to share content that has visuals or images, and more than three times as likely to share articles that include a thumbnail image, according to Buzzsumo. Video posts also do well, with Facebook users streaming more than 8 billion videos per day.

Users also engage with content like quizzes and interactive posts, as well as posts that tease interesting information.

Make sure your Facebook content focuses on visuals, with quality images or video optimized for mobile (in other words, users shouldn't have to turn their phone to view your video). Your headlines and descriptions should be enticing enough to get people to click through. As noted, interactive content gets high levels of engagement. Live video is also a great strategy for updating your audience.

You should note that organic reach for Facebook posts has been declining for some time. Part of this has to do with an increasing number of paid advertisers, and part of it is due to changes to Facebook's newsfeed algorithm. If you want maximum effectiveness on Facebook, you'll want to put some money behind your marketing strategy.

Instagram has seen remarkable growth as a social media platform. So much growth, in fact, that Facebook purchased the social network for $1 billion just 18 months after it first launched. It's one of the largest social media platforms, with 1.1 billion active users.

Instagram is all about imagery and video. If you don't have stunning imagery, you won't capture users' attention. If you're in the food business, you're in luck. High quality imagery of food does incredibly well on Instagram. Behind-the-scenes peeks at businesses in action also captivates users.

Paid posts on Instagram get a lot of visibility, but Instagram gives you a good shot at organically appearing in users' newsfeeds as well. Make use of Instagram to give customers a look at the processes and people behind your brand. You should also make use of video, as video posts receive 38% more engagement than static images. Finally, remember that the only place you can link is in your bio, so if you want to use an Instagram post to funnel people to a specific URL you'll have to change the link regularly.

Twitter has had its share of issues with profitability and a dwindling user base, as well as controversy for its hesitance to ban extremist views. Nevertheless, it remains a social media powerhouse and an incredible channel for news, insights and marketing. And while total active users have been declining, daily users are on the rise.

Tweets with an associated GIF get 55% more engagement than those without. Video does even better, attracting 10 times the engagement of posts without video. Users are more likely to engage with Twitter ads during live events. Twitter users also use the platform to engage with brands for customer service queries.

Twitter is both a great advertising platform and a great customer service platform. It enables you to answer customers' questions and provide support immediately. If you're promoting your brand, make sure you use video. Video ads lift purchasing intent by 6%. For maximum engagement, the best time to send a tweet is 3PM on weekdays.

While other social media sites focus more on entertaining their users, LinkedIn is all about business. The platform has become one of the world's foremost professional networking and recruiting tools, and has also positioned itself as a forum for thought leadership.

How-to posts and listicles do best on LinkedIn. Research shows that posts split into five, seven or nine subheadings perform best, while headlines with 40–49 characters get the most engagement. Unlike other social media channels, video is actually a detriment on LinkedIn. Posts without video perform better than those with video.

LinkedIn is an excellent channel for building your personal brand and knowledge sharing. Top influencers and decision-makers come to LinkedIn to gain insight. Whatever business you're in, LinkedIn is the place to position yourself as an authority on your industry.

Pinterest is all about users finding a better version of themselves. From tattoo ideas to interior design, recipes to inspirational quotes, budgeting to business tips, Pinterest is forward-looking and aspirational.

Pinterest content is aspirational. Users go to Pinterest to plan for the future. 85% of female Pinterest users say they use the platform to plan life moments such as holidays, parties, vacations, redecorations, weddings or even just meals and trips to the gym. And considering the fact that 98% of users say they put the ideas they find on Pinterest into action, it's clear the platform is incredibly influential.

Pinterest is an excellent way to promote your content. Just keep in mind that the content you share on Pinterest should fit the platform's theme of aspiration and self-improvement. Your content should be geared towards teaching and sharing ideas, and it should paint a picture of how your insight will make the reader a better version of themselves.

Paid advertising on Pinterest is also valuable, particularly considering many users are on the platform to discover products. It's wise to gear your advertising towards life moments, as ads with this focus see a 22% lift in sales.