Why Is Social Media Advertising So Effective?
Why is social media advertising so effective for businesses? See how businesses SocialMotion Media are using social media to grow their customer base.
Did you know social media advertising usage in the United Kingdom is forecast to hit 42.88 million people by 2022?
For perspective, there are about 65.64 million people in the UK! This means about 65 percent of the population will be on social media!
Facebook is the most popular social network in the UK, followed by Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, Reddit, Instagram and LinkedIn.
As a business owner, social media presents an ideal opportunity to advertise your products and services. In fact, social media advertising is far more effective than other forms of advertising, including television and print!
But why is this the case? Read on to find out.
Accurate Targeting
In the old days of TV, print and billboard marketing, business owners who could afford these mediums could only hope their ads are reaching their target consumers.
Let say you’re selling BMW car parts. When you buy ad space on TV, there is no way to ensure the ad only reaches BMW car owners. You will have to assume many of your target customers will tune into their TVs and catch your ad.
Social media takes the guesswork out of the advertising. Many social networks provide tools that enable advertisers to narrow down their target audience to bits. You can narrow down to a specific age group, location, average household income, gender and even personal interests.
Increased Customer Interaction
Traditional advertising options don’t offer much in terms of engagement with prospective customers.
Unless an interested customer calls, texts, emails or drops by your store to ask a question, there is nothing much you can to increase engagement.
Social media customer service is an engagement monster. Once a social media user sees your ad on Facebook, for instance, they can immediately visit your page, send a message or leave a comment. The same can be said of Twitter and other popular networks.
With increased user engagement comes increased lead conversion.
Detailed Analytics
Let’s go back to our car parts seller.
After the ad goes live, there is no reliable way to tell how many of the target customers the ad reached. Sure, if the number of inquiries and sales spike soon after, you can conclude the ad was effective. But was that its maximum potential?
Social media advertising comes with a host of analytics tools which let you monitor the performance of your ad, in real time!
With this information, you can tweak your advertising campaigns for greater results.
Cost Effective
With traditional advertising options, you typically have to pay the entire cost of the ad before it goes on the medium.
However, social media advertising is a lot more flexible. With Facebook ads, for instance, you have the option of paying a certain pre-determined amount only when a user clicks on the ad!
This way, social media levels the playing field for all businesses. Unlike TV and print advertising which is typically a preserve of large businesses, social media advertising gives small businesses a strong fighting chance.
Social Media Advertising Is the Future
Looking into the future, it’s hard to see a world where social media advertising isn’t king.
As smartphone technology advances and internet penetration increases, more and more people will consume news, information and entertainment of all sorts online!
If you were sceptical about the advertising effectiveness of social media, the jury is out. You should be running your ads on social media!
Have any questions? Ask away in the comments section below or read more about social media marketing London here.