Money follows followers

Radhika Sharma

It’s improbable that you haven’t been exposed to the world of social media yet. Unless you are a saint meditating on a hill with no signal! It is a part of our lives and dominates our every waking moment. The medium is used to promote business, advertise products and generate revenue. Its reach is massive. Let’s just say — if you want your product or service to create a buzz today, there is no better way than promoting it on the web!

If you plan to use social media to endorse your business, here is a guide to help you. 

Facebook

Founded by genius Mark Zuckerberg in 2004, it is now a major source to disseminate information. While majority uses the network to keep in touch with their friends and family, entrepreneurs are harnessing its power to make money and grow businesses. The newsfeed has gone through several changes in the last couple of years. Pages are created to promote businesses. Sponsored ads target the right audience. Also several analytical tools are used to gauge the reach of ads. 

Twitter

Twitter is popular for breaking news stories faster than any traditional media. The power of 140 characters is unprecedented. Followers make for the social currency and can get you celebrity status. Paid handles work best to promote a brand or a cause. Signing up is simple and its mobile app works seamlessly.

Instagram

It started as a forum where people would share their pictures. Founded in 2010, Instagram is one of the fastest growing networks in the world and boasts of a billion pictures uploaded on it everyday. With its filters and editing tools, it converts average pictures into masterpieces. Also, Instagram is a hashtag game and judges your popularity with creative hashtags. It is now the most preferred platform for brands for publicity, courtesy its large userbase. Consistency is the key to success and fame on Instagram! 

Snapchat

The new medium on the block that took the social world by storm is Snapchat. It’s concept is very simple — post pictures and videos on your story with your phone. These disappear after a period of 24 hours. The concept became immensely popular in no time. The key to success on Snapchat is creativity and innovation. It’s addictive and a huge resource for brands and celebrities to immediately connect with their audience. The ‘Snapchat effect’ soon caught the fancy of other social networks, with Facebook, Instagram and even Whatsapp introducing their versions of the 24-hour photo validity. 

YouTube

You might wonder about YouTube’s inclusion in this list? It is the single largest carrier of videos on the internet. A grand total of 3.25 billion hours of videos are watched every month. All you need is a video camera, a login id and you are set! Millions of users everyday upload videos on a variety of topics. It has given rise to a new generation of internet celebrities with 40-50 million subscribers and content that is exclusively released on YouTube. There’s a new-age saying — if it’s not on YouTube, it probably doesn’t exist on the internet. You ticket to stardom is consistency, creativity and technical prowess.