Social media advertising is increasingly becoming a more powerful marketing tool. As social media platforms grow, so does the importance of using these platforms for marketing. Facebook currently leads the way in social media advertising, but Twitter ads are getting stronger, and Instagram are just starting to roll out their ads. These are the top 5 reasons why you should use social media advertising over more traditional forms of advertising:

1. Low cost – One of the best things about social media advertising is how your budget can be as big or small as you like. From a £50 campaign to £10,000 – it’s really up to you. Budgets can be tweaked in real time, so if you see something which is working then you can throw more money at it. Unlike many forms of traditional advertising where you have to pay a significant chunk up front then find out that the campaign was unsuccessful, social media advertising lets you tweak costs instantly.
2. Powerful targeting – With platforms such as Facebook and Twitter holding large amounts of information about all of us (scary), this lets us as marketers tap into this information. Obviously you’re not able to get individual’s information (don’t worry!), but think of it more like an extensive anonymous database we can advertise to. Facebook lets you pick from age, gender, relationship status, interests etc. Twitter lets you target by similar fields along with keywords, followers and more. This is incredibly powerful, and arguably the most targeted form of advertising you can possibly do.
3. Low barrier to entry – Anyone can do it! There’s nothing stopping any Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn user from launching an ad campaign. Obviously it helps to know what you’re doing, especially when you’re spending actual money. But it’s an awesome advertising tool which is available at the fingertips of us all.
4. Smartphone advertising – Everyone has smartphones these days, whether it’s an iPhone, Android or Windows Phone. Arguably the most popular apps on smartphones are social networks such as Facebook and Twitter. With social media advertising you’re able to reach those who’re using their smartphones on a daily basis, whilst they’re out and about. People have their smartphones on them all the time, meaning as marketers you’re able to target people no matter where they are.
5. Real time statistics – We’ve saved the best til last. Arguably one of the biggest benefits of social media advertising over traditional forms of advertising is the real time in-depth statistics you’re able to access. For example, when someone clicks on your Facebook ad you’ll be instantly able to see that your ad has received that click. Stat lovers, look no further – Impressions, reach, click through rate, cost per click, display frequency, and more! You’re able to get a good idea how your ad is performing in real time, allowing you to tweak and optimise things on the go. Something you simply cannot do with most traditional forms of advertising.

Whilst social media advertising is incredibly powerful, I don’t want to disregard the use of traditional advertising entirely. There are still plenty of successful uses for traditional forms of advertising, but for small to medium sized businesses digital advertising is becoming increasingly more attractive. What are the main reasons why you use social media for your advertising needs? Let us know in the comments below!

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