11 Social Media Stats You Can’t Ignore
Like all the best things in life, social media is an art and a science. In 2018 and 2019, when Facebook and Instagram changed their algorithms to favor paid ads and more engaging content, those who were good at the art of social media were forced to dig into the science. Data became so much more important as accounts that grew to 10K+ followers easily in 2016, were now struggling to get their posts seen by even 7% of those followers. Understanding it can feel like an uphill battle for small business owners, me included.
To make sense of it all, I focus on the data collected by trusted experts in the field, or published information from Facebook itself (not to say that Facebook is a beacon of trust, but it’s the best thing I have found to not buy into third party assumptions, rumors and hype). These numbers have helped me stay motivated, cut down on the noise, and often talk clients off the ledge of social media-hysteria.
Here are 11 statistics that can help you make some of sense of social media in 2020:
3.1 billion people are using social media worldwide.*
Youtube is the second most visited website after Google. * (Amazon is #14. So yes, video matters.)
79% of American internet users are on Facebook, making it the most popular social media platform.*
Only 15% of people watch Facebook videos with the sound on. * (That means 85% don’t care about your “weird” voice.)
Only 24% of eCommerce stores see a positive return from their paid Facebook Ads.*
More than half of the global Instagram population worldwide is aged 34 years or younger.
Facebook data says that 70% of shoppers look to Instagram for product discovery. *
71% of consumers who have had a positive experience with a brand on social media are likely to recommend the brand to their friends and family.*
Instagram users browse for an average of 53 minutes per day, versus Facebook’s 58 minutes per day. *
Video posts on Instagram see 49% higher interactions than image posts.*
77% of weekly Pinterest users have discovered a new brand or product on the platform, and 98% of Pinners report trying new things they find on Pinterest.*
BONUS STAT: 0% of marketers have ever convinced me that they know 100% of what is going on in the world of social media!
I know that last stat doesn’t help anyone, but I have to be transparent about this fact. I have my hand in the digital marketing mix on a daily basis, sifting through tons of information and content— and if I had a nickel for every expert who claimed to have the answer then begins a post with, “but there is no one clear way to approach this…” then I would take all those nickels and buy a Facebook Ad! Hang in there. Slow and steady still wins the race!