// WIDSIX WRITTEN WORD //
A Guide To Niche Social Media Platforms
We are all familiar with the Big Three social media platforms: Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. And you should probably have some kind of a presence on all three. However, if you’re looking to expand your social media reach even further, you could dabble in tapping into niche social media platforms. These platforms are sort of off the beaten path, if you will. They have a solid user base, but they’re not the first ones you think of when you think “social media marketing.” This has quite a few benefits that could play into your favor if you have the resources and budget to explore other platforms outside of the main ones. Here are some of the top niche social media platforms and how you can incorporate them into your marketing plan:
Amino Apps
The Amino App is a “network of communities [that] lets you explore, discover, and obsess over the things you’re into. Each Amino (community) has great content, the friendliest of people, and exciting events.”
Basically, Aminos are individual communities hosted on one app. These communities focus on general topics like Gaming, Anime, Crafting, Sports, and much more, as well as narrower topics within those categories like specific games, shows, etc. You’re bound to find a community where your business or brand fits, and it lends a great way to connect with that specific community.
While technically Reddit isn’t a “niche” platform, it is one that most companies aren’t utilizing for advertising purposes. As of 2018, there are approximately 330 million reddit users (otherwise referred to as “redditors”), which means this is a huge untapped resource. Reddit functions as a sort of bulletin board. It allows you to subscribe to certain “subreddits”, which encompass different subjects. Subreddits are a place to discuss topics related to these subjects.
The only issue with Reddit is that users are highly cautious and hostile towards brands attempting to weasel their way in and advertise to their fiercely protected communities. Because of this, promoting your brand on Reddit must be a labor of love and a test of patience. You must actually integrate into the community as a regular user would do, contributing more to others’ posts than self-promoting. This can be highly rewarding however, as it allows you to get an inside look at the members of communities you are serving with your service or product.
Houzz
Houzz’s aim is to connect homeowners with design and building professionals. It serves many purposes, mainly as a search tool, social media platform, community builder, and directory website that is focused around residential housing.
This platform is excellent for anyone in real estate, interior design, or anything home-related.
Instructables
Instructables is a website where people can share tutorials and guides on any number of things, but mainly DIY and crafts. This is a great place to utilize content marketing to provide value to your customer base. You can post tutorials about how to use your product, things you can do with it, tips and tricks, etc.
Meetup
Meetup is a site that lets individuals, groups, businesses, etc set up in-person activities and events that anyone can attend. This platform is perfect for restaurants, bars, or really any business that relies on storefront traffic to host fun events that get people in the door.
Why go niche?
The massive platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc are difficult to gain traction on because of the sheer amount of users and content being uploaded every single day. It’s easy for your posts to get swept away in the stream of constant… stuff. So. Much. Stuff.
The great thing about these smaller platforms is that they don’t have as many users or as much volume of content, which means that your content has a much higher chance of being seen. Not only that, but it’s more likely to be seen by people who will actually be interested in it. So if you’ve got the budget, why not try one of these out?!
