Social media has become an important platform for businesses to launch, build and promote their brand. But while you may want to have a presence on every one of them to expand your reach, not all of them may work for your business. In fact, some of them may be a waste of your valuable time and even counterproductive. Therefore, it is important to choose the sites that match your business goals.

Here are 5 ways to know which social media sites will work best for your business:

1. You want to increase awareness about your products and services:

If your aim is to increase awareness about your products and services, then no other site beats Facebook. The most popular social media site today, it has over a billion users worldwide and over 73% of the US population has a presence on it. Facebook also happens to have the most demographically even user distribution. Every status you post reaches out not only to your ‘friends’, but also has the potential to reach out to millions of people through your friends. However, there are signs that teenagers are deserting the site because of the presence of their parents.

2. You want to expand your customer base through contests, offers and discounts

If your aim is to expand your customer base through contests, offers and exclusive discounts, then Twitter is where you should be. Although not as big as Facebook (18% of the US population has a Twitter account), studies have shown that most users are “silent”, they have a higher tendency to “Follow” brands. More importantly, studies have revealed that the majority of Twitter users who follow a brand do so to take advantage of contests, offers and exclusive discounts.

3. Your target customers are mostly males who are in technical and engineering fields:

If your target customers are mostly males who are in technical and engineering fields, then Google+ should be the site of choice for you. Studies have shown that a 67% of Google+ users are males with an average age of 28. The majority of the users of the site are in technical and engineering fields. Google+ is also ideal for content sharing and its compatibility with YouTube (which Google acquired a few years ago) makes it the ideal tool for content marketing and increasing brand awareness.

4. Your target customers are young people who are glued to their mobile phone

If your target customers are young people under 30, then an active presence on Instagram may be most productive for you. Although it has less members than Twitter (17% of the US population), it has the second most devoted users who have a high log in rate and participate actively. The most important thing is that a full 43% of mobile phone users between 18 and 29 use Instagram actively. Another interesting statistic is that it is the only platform that is skewed towards Hispanics and African Americans.

5. Your target customers are mostly females in the mid to high income category:

If your target customers are mostly female in the mid to high income category, then Pinterest could be the ideal social media site for your company. Studies have shown that of its members that constitute 21% of the US population, a full 84% of its users are females. 34% of it users have an annual household income of at least $100,000. Pinterest has been found to have the best ROI for businesses that target women customers.

What social media platforms do you use?