Who uses social media the most? What do social media users shop for? Why do users engage with brands? Glad you asked!
Here are 10 new and surprising stats marketers need to know about social media usage. All of these stats come from Nielsen's 2016 Social Media Report, which was released today.
1. Women spend more time using social media than men. On average, women spent 6 hours and 33 minutes per week on social networks while men spent 4 hours and 23 minutes per week.
2. African-American adults use social media more than any other ethnic group when you combine smartphone, tablet, and PC usage (39.4 million) - but Hispanic adults are the biggest consumers of social media on smartphones (30 million).
3. Gen X (ages 35-49) spend the most time on social media - 6 hours and 58 minutes per week. Millennials (ages 18-34) came in second, spending 6 hours and 19 minutes of their time per week on social networks.
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4. 41 percent of consumers who spent 2 hours or less on social media spent at least $500 on online purchases over the past 12 months, while 38 percent of consumers who spent at least 3 hours per day on social media spent $500 or more.
5. At least three-quarters of U.S. social media users made an online purchase within the last year, but only 46 percent of non-social media users made an online purchase during the same timeframe.
6. Over the last year, 30 percent of people who used social networks for less than 1 hour per day were shopping for travel reservations, such as hotel rooms or auto rentals and 26 percent of users made a purchase.
7. During the past year, 27 percent of people who used social media for 1 to 2 hours per day shopped for movie tickets, while 19 percent of users bought tickets online.
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8. Over the last year, 28 percent of people who used social networks for 3 or more hours per day shopped for a mobile app, while 19 percent of users made a purchase.
9. About 37 percent of all consumers said they use social media to find out about products and services, while about 32 percent use social media to receive exclusive offers, coupons, or other discounts from brands.
10. Nearly 30 percent of people who use social media at least 3 hours per day said showing support of and engaging with their favorite companies or brands was very or somewhat important.
Guest Authored By Danny Goodwin. Danny is a News Writer for Search Engine Journal, covering social media, content, and search marketing news. He is also Content Strategist for L&T Co., a brand publishing company. Danny has been a professional editor, writer, and ghostwriter in the marketing industry for 10 years, creating content for SMBs to global brands, spanning all things search and digital. He formerly was managing editor for Momentology and editor for Search Engine Watch. Follow Danny on Twitter.
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