Pew Research recently came out with their Social Media Update for 2013. Research is wonderful, but what’s more important are the takeaways and stories you can piece together from it all.
I’ve spent some time with Pew’s latest numbers and thought I would share my four biggest takeaways. There is nothing groundbreaking here, but I thought the reminders are still worth sharing.
Please Note: They sampled 1,801 US adults, age 18 and older.
No. 1- Facebook is still king.
71% of online adults are now Facebook users (Pew).
Despite all the recent chatter about Facebook, statistics like this show over and over again that Facebook is still king. While I do agree that younger demographics are also engaging on other platforms (and probably more), we can’t ignore these statistics.
We also need to keep in mind that not everyone is experiencing the same Facebook fatigue as we (social media managers) are. It’s still important to cater to the platform and think about paying to play for bigger reach.
No. 2- Diversify content across platforms.
42% of online adults use multiple social networking platforms. For those who use only one social networking site, Facebook is typically—though not always—the platform of choice (Pew).
Those who use just one social networking site, 8% use LinkedIn, 4% use Pinterest, and 2% each say that Instagram or Twitter is their sole social networking site (Pew).
These statistics say it all. If a brand is posting the same content on every single platform then customers are seeing the same thing over and over and over again. As social media mangers and content creators we have to push ourselves to create different content for each platform, otherwise, customers are going to tire of brands on social.
The key to differentiating content starts with a good platform strategy. What is the goal, audience, voice, etc. of each platform? And, how will you use them differently?
No. 3- Tailor content according to the platform.
When you look at all the research, it’s easy to see many of the social media networks appeal to a certain demographic (except for Facebook, which seems to reach the masses). According to Pew:
- LinkedIn is especially popular among college graduates and Internet users in higher income households.
- Twitter and Instagram have particular appeal to younger adults and urban dwellers.
- Pinterest holds particular appeal to female users (women are four times more likely to use Pinterest than men).
Think about the audience that engage on each platform and mold your tone and content appropriately. If your intended audience is not engaging on the platform, then don’t waste time on it. Bottom line.
No. 4- Push good content multiple times on Twitter.
46% of Twitter users are daily visitors, with 29% visiting multiple times per day.
If you only push your content once on Twitter, there’s a good chance most of your audience will not see it (especially with all the noise out there). If you’re spending the time and money to craft great content, videos, stories, etc. then you need to push it on multiple occasions. Be sure to vary your times (early morning, late night) and days to reach different people. It’s also important to change up your copy and messaging. Push content more than once, but get creative with how you do so!
Research Provided: Maeve Duggan and Aaron Smith, Pew Research Center, January 2014, “Social Media Update 2013” Available at here.
