Are you managing social media for your business? Well, there are some useful to know social media statistics this year you may want to check out. Here are ten of them that could make you rethink the way you’re approaching social media.
The Fastest Growing Demographic on Twitter is the 55-64 year age bracket
- This demographic has grown 79% since 2012.
- The 45–54 year age bracket is the fastest growing demographic on both Facebook and Google+.
- For Facebook, this group has jumped 46%.
- For Google+, 56%.
These numbers are pretty surprising, and quite impressive. Before, we always thought social media was for the younger crowd, for the teenagers. With these facts, it’s good to know the importance of having a good social media strategy if these age brackets fit the audience you’re trying to target.
Rethink: When using social media, try keeping older users in mind when you’re using these platforms. When it comes to taste and interests, age makes all the difference. If all you’re doing is focusing on the young crowd, you could be turning off those in the older age bracket, and ultimately losing a good demographic base.
189 million Users of Facebook are Actually ‘mobile only’
Did you know that mobile users of Facebook generates an astounding 30% of Facebook’s ad revenue? This is a 7% increase from the end of 2012!
Rethink: From all those using Facebook, there are probably more users accessing this social network site from mobile devices than you may have thought. When you’re posting content on Facebook, it’ll be wise to consider how your content will be displayed on mobile devices.
Youtube Reaches More US Adults In the 18-34 range than any cable network
Back in the day, before the internet and social media was viewed the way it is now, more people would see advertising on TV. But not anymore. If you’re after the 18 to 34 year olds in the US now a days, you’ll need to rethink how you show your stuff to them. And what is this new way? Youtube! One video isn’t going to really reach more viewers than a cable network could, but utilizing a platform with such a wide user base makes quite a lot of sense.
Two new members join LinkedIn every second!
LinkedIn is a social network for the professionally minded. It continues to grow literally every second! LinkedIn is a platform that is an incredible source of information and conversation for any professional who wants to connect to other like minded professionals out there.
Rethink: If you’re thinking of focusing on new uses, LinkedIn is a great network, and is worth paying attention to. You can make your group or community a great source of information, as well as a newbie-friendly space that can help increase your userbase.
Social Media has over taken porn as the #1 activity on the web
This one might actually be shocking. We knew social media was popular, but wow! Using social media is the most common thing to do online these days. If you’re online watching silly videos on Facebook or Tweeting to your fans, at least you know that a darn good portion of people are doing the same thing at the same moment.
Rethink: Because quite a large number of people are on social media networks, it would make sense to put some time and effort into your social media strategy. Certainly giving it more of your time would be a great idea.
LinkedIn has a lower percentage of active users than other popular social media networks
It is true, quite a few new members are joining LinkedIn at a rapid pace, but as far as existing users are concerned, active users are lower than most of the biggest social networks around. These people, though signed up, aren’t participating. So, in this new light, don’t expect to get as good of a response with participatory content on LinkedIn, as you may on Facebook or Twitter.
Rethink: When it comes to getting people involved, you’ll need to think about what platforms are the best ones for use in that situation. Facebook and Twitter are better for doing contest and surveys and other conversations. Passive content, such as blog posts or slide decks are more suited for those people following you on LinkedIn.
93% of marketers use social media for business
Did you know that only 7% of marketers don’t use social media for their business? Crazy huh? This means that there are a quite a few folks out there who are involved with social media marketing. It’s a common thing now to include social media as a part of an overall marketing budget or strategy.
Rethink: IF you’re having some trouble getting a working strategy, or simply want a little extra advice, no worries. You won’t have to do it alone. With 93% of marketers using social media for business, there’s bound to be somebody to give you a helping hand. Even without first hand help from a live person, you can check out blogs, videos and slide decks to take a peek at that could help.
25% of those using smartphones in the 18 to 44 age range say that can’t recall the last time their smartphone wasn’t next to them
It’s pretty clear that mobile is a big step in social media that needs some paying attention to. We have heard the cliché of the owners of smartphones who always have them at their sides at all times. This is more than a cliché. It’s close to the truth. If 25% of people between the ages of 18 and 44 aren’t able to remember when they DON’T have their phone with them, that means there are very few times that they aren’t connected to the web in some way.
Rethink: With the idea that more people have a smartphone with them almost all the time, this doesn’t mean it’s good to interrupt them at anytime in their lives. Just because they have a phone it their pocket doesn’t mean they’re available all the time.
Even with 62% of marketers blog or plan to blog in 2013, but only 9% of US marketing companies employ a full time blogger
Blogging is a big focus for marketers that want to be able to take advantage of social media and content marketing. This is a good thing, as blogging for your business has a lot of advantages. By controlling your company blog, you are able to set the tone and use it to market your product, provide interesting information for your customers, or share company news. With only 9% of marketing companies hiring bloggers fulltime, there is a lot of pressure to create high-quality content on a consistent basis.
Keep in mind that not all marketers are working at marketing companies. The stats are still pretty interesting though – how many companies can afford to hire a full time blogger?
Rethink: Regardless of if you have a full time blogger for your business, you still need to be sure that you have a content strategy that requires constant posting on your blog. This means a lot of work for your marketing team and/or other team members to keep up the volume of constant updates to your blog.
25% of Facebook users won’t bother with privacy settings
In the last few years, we’ve heard about social media companies and privacy policies. Many of us will remember Facebook was in the news about their privacy issues. Instagram users got into a tiff about changing their terms of service, and the news about the NSA has gotten people to think about their online privacy.
But even with all the news about social media privacy and security conscious users, Velocity Digital has reported that 25% of Facebook users don’t even look at their privacy settings.
Rethink: This could be a big mistake, especially assuming that all of your customers are thinking along the same way. Especially if you’re basing this on what has been on the tech news.
Just remember this: Your customers might have different priorities than what you may expect.
In The End
Ehen it comes to your social media strategy, it comes down to what your goals are, and who you’re targeting. Despite this, it never hurts to pay attention to the trends that are currently making their way through the web.