Most people know about Instagram and Facebook advertising options, but have you heard of all the other opportunities outside of these platforms?
Paid social is one of the most effective ways to target audiences within the current market. We hosted Jordan Lomax in our recent Masterclass Online, “How to win at social media advertising,” to learn all about all the platforms that brands are currently under-utilising.
1. Spotify
Audio is with everyone all day. No matter what an individual is doing, they can always be engaging in audio sources such as podcasts and music. Platforms such as Spotify can hence reach people in moments when visual media can’t. The platform is;
- Easy and simple to use
- Able to target audiences in innovative ways such as through the types of genres of music they listen to, and certain interests such as comedy or fitness, etc.
- One of the few services which make the ad for you if you provide a script, language and voice profile
Overall, Spotify is a great platform to increase brand awareness. The large volume of music that individuals listen to offers a unique opportunity to promote your brand.
2. LinkedIn
LinkedIn is proven to be an effective platform for B2B products. Your audience can be targeted based on traditional factors such as age, demographics, etc. However, you can also target business factors such as;
- Education
- Skills
- Job functions
- Company
- Connections
Your target audience is more receptive on LinkedIn, having much higher leads than other social media platforms. Due to the effectiveness of LinkedIn campaigns, their advertising services are more expensive, hence your brand will need a larger budget to access this platform.
3. Twitter
Twitter is a highly under-utilised platforms in the Australian market. The platform is commonly used for social listening, allowing your brand to engage in a more casual conversation with your target audience. The platform is highly cost-efficient as you only pay on an impression basis e.g. pay per person who clicked the ad. Your campaign can be created around;
- What you want to achieve with the campaign
- Your audience and how you would like to target your audience using keywords, events, etc.
The platform is commonly used for businesses in tech, B2B and start-ups. Twitter will be most effective for your brand if your ads spark conversation and gets people retweeting material from your brand.
4. YouTube
YouTube is the second-largest search engine in the world (after Google.) With such a broad reach, the platforms targeting capabilities are one of the best available. YouTube has a very unique payment and targeting options. You can target your audience through;
- Viewer demographics
- Content (keywords people are searching)
- Topics of video’s (beauty, gaming, etc.)
- Placements on specific channels or videos within those channels
The more specific you get in your targeting options, the more your business will have to invest in their campaign. However, the platform is also highly cost effective as you will only be charged if your ad is played for longer than 30 seconds, or if your audience has clicked through.
5. Pinterest
Your audience’s attention is won and lost at the very beginning of the consumer journey. Pinterest is an effective platform to spark the interest of your target audience in your product, with 98% of Pinterest users said they would try new things they found on Pinterest.
The targeting options on Pinterest are highly effective. If consumers are searching for a product that your brand can provide, your product can appear on those pages in a manner that is very native with the page’s content. As well as targeting keywords, you can also target your audience through gender, age, locations, and languages.
The platform is predominantly for brands with visual products such as fashion or art. However, Pinterest is not going in for the hard sell. Your main goal is to inspire and make people want to come back to the photo when they are using their pinned photos to make purchases. To achieve this make sure your photos are similar to the style and quality of photos that you find on Pinterest.
Your audience might be on a platform that you never expected, so test everything! Use Facebook and Instagram in conjunction with other platforms to figure out the most effective strategy to reach your audience.
Jordan Lomax is a Business Chicks Premium member, an experienced Social and Digital Marketing Manager and graphic designer who has worked with a large portfolio of brands including Spotify, Shopbop, and OMD Australia. Jordan runs the Social Lab – a social, web and design agency. She is also the lead instructor for General Assembly’s digital marketing immersive.
