Whether we like it or not, social media has been integrated into our everyday lives and, for many people, has become as much a part of daily life as food and water. As a business owner, you have hundreds of millions, even billions in some cases, of users at your disposal. Furthermore, the rest of your industry is likely leveraging social media as a free or cheap way to reach your target demographics.

According to Chris Bower, founder of DetroitInternetMarketing.com “Social media is a powerful way to stay relevant in the eyes of the consumer. There is no better way to stay in touch with your customers”. There is no better way to stay in touch with your customers.” In order to be able to do this, you have to stay relevant in the social media landscape, so here are seven social media platforms to help you with this in 2021, which include a mixed bag of popular platforms that many brands aren’t using to their advantage and newer platforms that present fresh opportunities.

Clubhouse

Clubhouse is an invite-only social networking platform that launched in Spring 2020. Unlike some of the mainstream social platforms, Clubhouse is completely audio-based and allows users to talk, listen, and host their own shows with live streaming sessions. Users are notified when someone they follow creates a room or joins someone else’s room. The platform paves the way for candid conversation and unedited dialogue around all types of topics.

To date, Clubhouse has attracted many Silicon Valley investors and recently made headlines when Elon Musk joined. His first room session featured Robinhood CEO, where Musk lightly expressed his disdain for the company’s Gamestop handling and its CEO was offered the opportunity to defend their decisions. Moving forward, Clubhouse could be a great opportunity to expound upon the rise of the podcast and connect with users in a unique and more intimate way.

YouTube

In order to understand how to properly leverage YouTube, you need to understand what it truly is. It’s a search engine for videos. In fact, it’s the second-largest search engine in the world that also happens to be owned by the largest search engine in the world, Google. Producing videos for YouTube can be intimidating, but it’s a surprisingly forgiving medium. Users are looking for information, and if the information is good they’ll forgive a low production quality. With 2 billion monthly users, the potential reach on YouTube is endless.

Vero

Vero is touted as a more authentic version of Instagram because its social sharing platform eliminates algorithms, ads, and data mining. Users can share all types of content, from music to books and links. They can also edit their sharing capabilities by easily setting view permissions per post and choosing between a combination of four distinct categories: close friends, friends, acquaintances or followers.

Although there are no ads on Vero, brands can leverage its influencer option. If a brand wants to work with a Vero user, the user can embed a “Buy Now” or other CTA directly into the post. Vero might be an ideal option for companies that want to create more meaningful brand relationships with their users and cater to a more authentic, niche user base.

TikTok

Video is an excellent medium for catching the attention of your customers. Although, Microsoft did a study in 2015 that showed our digital world has reduced the average human attention span to just eight seconds. Enter TikTok and 60-second video clips. This video-sharing social media platform is a great way to reach customers with short videos. If you can provide useful or entertaining content in less than 60 seconds, you have the ability to reach thousands of prospective customers each and every day.

Reddit

Reddit is a social news aggregation and web content rating website. Although marketers have dubbed it this the “trickiest” platform to crack, namely because it focuses on online discussion and community building rather than on promotion (though the platform does feature ads and the ability to promote your posts). Once you’ve made the effort to understand its platform and intricacies, you can liken it to gaining access to a no holds barred club.

Already, a number of brands have successfully implemented Reddit into their marketing strategies, including Audi, SpaceX, and Lemonade. If you’re interested in including Reddit into your social campaign, start by joining communities as a user and learning more about how the Reddit community works.

Pinterest

Like Instagram, Pinterest is a visual medium. Unlike Instagram, Pinterest relies entirely on visuals. Businesses that have products to sell like clothing can benefit greatly from what Pinterest has to offer. Service industries like home remodeling and decor or travel can also leverage Pinterest with eye-catching photos. The more your posts are shared or pinned across Pinterest, the more users will see what you have to offer.

Tumblr

If you’re unfamiliar with Tumblr, it’s a microblogging site for sharing photos, blog posts, videos, audio, and more. Whether or not you’re blogging on your own website, Tumblr can be a great place to share your social media posts. While art, fashion, and cat photos mostly dominate the landscape of Tumblr, there’s plenty of room for infographics, photos, and short videos from other platforms. The beauty of Tumblr is that you don’t have to build a large following in order to widely disseminate your message. Instead, interactions and conversation are what drive users to share content.