Social media has become one of the most integral parts of our daily lives. Creating a connection worldwide is the core feature of social media. Through various apps like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter(now X), TikTok, Pinterest, Snapchat, WhatsApp, etc. users can connect with anyone around the globe and thanks to this unimaginable reach, social media is one of the biggest places for business and marketing. Social media marketing is currently the biggest marketing domain with enormous growth year after year. Be it for the connectivity of users or for the marketers and brands to create their business, every social media platform offers a different USP and user demographics.
If we were to compare all these social media platforms based on creating a marketplace then Instagram would be on top. With more than two billion monthly active users, Instagram as a visual networking platform has revolutionized the social media marketing sector. It provides and continuously updates its features which helps marketers to reach a larger audience. Instagram is a great place to collect user-generated content from targeted audiences and its algorithm prioritizes engagement above all!
Twitter, now known as X, with a reach of over 350 million monthly active users, is now facing a lot of complexities due to the change of its father company. Twitter is a microblogging platform, best for real-time immediate updates of any current situation. Brands can establish their business through Twitter’s direct tagging and mentioning features which helps them to recognize easily and establish connection with their audiences.
But for Twitter, it is difficult to keep up with the current trends amidst the rapid flow of various information. For this reason, brands face challenges to maintain their customer service and reputation. However, Twitter as a platform is still strong enough to create a marketplace, but it is difficult for brands to sustain.
LinkedIn best works for B2B marketing strategy. Being mostly known for its professional networking, LinkedIn is still at the top list of ‘famous’ social media platforms with over 700 million users worldwide. Not being a visual platform, LinkedIn focuses on only business-related content which creates a limit for other virtually driven brands to build their business on this platform.
Instagram vs Twitter vs LinkedIn
| FEATURES | TWITTER(now X) | ||
| MAIN FOCUS | Visual Content | Text-based Content | Professional and Business Content |
| USER DEMOGRAPHICS | Younger audience (18-35) | Wide range of audience but young generation in majority (18-50) | Professionals, Job seekers |
| MAU | More than 2 Billion | Approx 360 Million | 922.3 million active users (they dont publish MAU) |
| CONTENT FORMAT | Images, short and long videos, live | Tweets, Threads, Spaces | Articles, posts, videos |
| ENGAGEMENT RATE | High | Mediocre | Low but high range of interactions |
| REACH | Mediocre, affected due to change of algorithm | Basic requires paid promotions | Low to moderate, dependent on engagements |
| Ideal for | D2C, UGC, Brand Promotions | News, information, current affairs | B2B professionals |
Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn all being the major social media platforms serve distinct features in their platforms. In some areas Instagram excels than others, like in building community, creativity, visual appeal etc. which makes it a great place for marketing. And for all that Instagram ranks in the top with Facebook and YouTube.
