Before you decide with social media platforms to use, you need to decide what type of business you are: B2B or B2C.
B2B- Business to Business
B2C- Business to Consumer
Profit Meadow Bookkeeping is B2B. I own a business that sells its services to another business.
The ice cream shop down the street is B2C. They are a business selling products to consumers.
B2B Social Media
For B2Bs, the biggest platform you should be on LinkedIn. You can search for people based on their job title there, so that you are only connecting with business owners.
Facebook is also important to have for B2Bs simply because it is the social media giant at the moment. Most people look for a Facebook page to establish if your business is credible or not.
B2C Social Media
For B2Cs, the opportunities are endless. You will need to do LOTS of research on your products/services AND your ideal client to make sure you are in the right place. For instance, if you are marketing to older people, Facebook is a great place for you to start. However, if you are marketing to teens/young adults, they may not be on Facebook. You may be better off focusing on Instagram (though it is still important to have a Facebook page for reasons listed above.)
As far as paid ads go, they aren’t crucial for running a successful business. Your best bet is to start creating content and being present on these platforms in order to gain trust with the public. Then, if you have extra money in the advertising budget, you can afford to take some ad risk yourself, or pay a professional to help you.
Don’t know if you have enough money to hire a social media marketer? Unsure if you can take a financial risk?