the next big social media platform

Should You Be on The Next Big Social Media Platform?

1 April 2021 | by Gina Lucia

In this article, I’m going to help you answer the age-old question: Should you be on the next big social media platform or not?

Watch the video:

I know the feeling. 

You’ve jumped on whatever social media platform you currently use and all anybody can talk about is the next big social media platform.

You’re told constantly you should be jumping on this bandwagon and if you don’t you could be missing out on clients, sales, opportunities, or great connections.

Why you should be on the next big social media platform

If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably got countless things all running through your mind at once.

too late social media

If you don’t get in early, it might be too late

You know the early adopters on Instagram saw massive success relatively easily because they were there early before big algorithms were put in place. 

So you rightly think, if you were to join this platform early, that might happen to you too.

So if you don’t take this opportunity, you might kick yourself later because success could have been yours.

social media FOMO

You might also be getting serious FOMO

This new platform has a load of new features that seem really interesting and everyone is talking about them, so if you don’t join, you might miss out on the fun.

Plus, big names are starting to join the platform, so if you don’t, you might also miss out on seeing what they do or hey, even interacting with them.

the platform for you

This could be THE platform for you and if you don’t join, you’ll never find out

After all, people you know, or at least trust online are raving about it. 

They’ve made connections and grown a following fast. 

So if you don’t join, you may never know if you’d feel the same.

Do you need permisson not to join?

Now I’m not here to tell you that all of these feelings are wrong, or unjustified because heck, I’ve felt them all and then some

After all, a lot of these new platforms use these exact fears to market themselves and get people to sign up. 

  • They might make it seem exclusive by making it invite-only.
  • They might ask big names to promote it for money.
  • Hey, they might even advertise their new platform specifically with these fears in mind.

Again, I’m not here to tell you to not join the next big social media platform. 

I am, however, here to either give you permission not to join or some guidance to help you decide if you actually want to join it or not. 

Because the decision is yours.

What to consider before joining the next big social media platform

So, let’s get into a few things you can consider before joining the next big social media platform, whatever that might be.

platform for your business

Decide if it’s really going to help your specific business

A lot of social media platforms make themselves look incredibly appealing, no matter what time of business you have. 

But it’s so important, as a business owner, for you to decide if this social media platform would benefit your business or not.

Think about your main goal for the social media platforms you’re on.

Do you want to:

  • Drive traffic to your website.
  • Sell products directly on the platform.
  • Work with brands or other businesses.
  • Talk to potential sources or get information for written pieces.

You get the point. 

If this new social media platform doesn’t help you do this main goal, is it worth your time? 

Or is it just a vanity project? One that’s only going to waste your time?

the next big social media platform

Next, decide if it suits you personally

If you’re a one-person business like me and you’re not outsourcing your social media work, ask yourself, will this platform suit me personally? 

Or put another way, will you enjoy it?

It doesn’t matter if it would be great for your business, if you’re not going to enjoy it for whatever reason, it’s not going to work.

Like it or not, social media platforms take a lot of time and dedication to keep going. 

So if you know you’re not going to enjoy it, don’t bother. 

long-term

Decide if you’re prepared to make the long-term commitment

As I said, social media platforms take huge amounts of time and work to get them, well, working for you and your business.

So you need to make sure, fairly early on, that you’re prepared to make the commitment to that work. 

You might get on this new social media platform early so it’s, in theory, easier to grow, but it’s still going to take work. 

Do you honestly have the time to dedicate to that work? 

task to focus on

Ask yourself, should you be focusing on something else?

With this extra work, there’s a potential for other pieces of work to start slipping through the cracks. 

Or if you’re anything like me, you might get burnt out with the extra mental load.

Could this new platform end up slowing down your entire business? 

If you’re stretched thin, your projects, products, other marketing platforms, customers or processes might get put on the backburner. 

Take a close look at your current capacity. 

If you were to add in a new, potentially time-consuming platform, would other areas of your business suffer? 

Can you afford to let that happen?

social media ideas

Your turn to decide…

Hopefully, with all of those considerations in mind, you’ll be able to make a balanced and informed decision on whether you should be on the next big social media platform or not. 

Because in reality, any social media platform can be a great tool to push your business forward and help you achieve your goals. 

Or it can simply be a massive distraction full of vanity metrics and could be a complete waste of your time.

But I want to know from you. 

Are you thinking of joining the next big social media platform or not? 

Do you get distracted with all the hype surrounding it? 

Leave me a comment and let’s chat!

Illustration by Freepik Storyset