An increasing number of marketers are utilising social media in an exponential capacity. This makes social media research a crucial tool in determining how to best put together an online strategy. This study by the Global Web Index indicates what the social media trends of 2018 will be. It was recently conducted via interviews, with over 350,000 internet users aged 16 – 64. The report covers audience reach, usage, how user behaviour is changing, platform popularity, and brand engagement.
Engagement
• 98% of digital consumers are social media users
• An average of 2 hours and 15 minutes per day is spend on social networks
• Mobile phones are the leading social device, holding a 13% lead over computers
• Digital consumers have an average of 8 social media accounts
• Each social media account is used for different networking behaviors
• 2017 was the first wear GWI observed no appreciable growth in the average number of social media accounts per user
Behaviors
• News and entertainment are big reasons behind social media usage
• Among 16 – 24 year-olds, filling up spare time is a big reason, as well
• Over half of digital consumers are following brands on social networks
• Social networks are the top product-research channel among 16-24 year-olds.
• All social networkers have watched a video clip online in the last month
• 56% of Facebook users have watched one on their network
• 4 in 10 Snapchatters and Instagrammers have watched video on these networks
Social Media Landscape
• 90% of digital consumers are a member of at least one of Facebook’s four main services(Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube)
• YouTube takes top position for usage
• Instagram has more users than Twitter amond 16 – 44 year-olds
• Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp are the top messaging services with over 50% of internet users
• Snapchat usage is highest among Gen Z with 36%