What have savvy brand marketers and social media strategists learned recently? Here’s a quick wrap-up of significant network trends, consumer behaviors, and brand results.
SOCIAL NETWORK TRENDS
Although Facebook continues to dominate; we are seeing significant growth in the visually
focused sites such as Instagram, Pinterest, and Tumblr.
1. Facebook is still #1 in time spent per month. Users spend 6.35 hours monthly on Facebook — that’s nearly twice as much usage as on Google+. Mobile Facebook usage is on the rise, but most users are on their desktops. (Facebook)
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2. Instagram has grown to 150 million+ active users. Now a part of the Facebook family, Instagram expanded exponentially, adding roughly 50 million users in the second half of 2013. This underscores the growing interest in creating and consuming visual content. (Instagram)
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3. 15% of Internet users are on Pinterest — that’s nearly 1 in 6 people. Also noteworthy: the typical Pinterest user is well educated, and 18% have an annual income of $75,000 or more. (Pew)
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4. Users spend more of their time on Tumblr and Pinterest vs. Twitter and LinkedIn. Twitter and LinkedIn do have larger user bases. But when you compare the percentage of their time that users spend on these sites, Tumblr and Pinterest win. (ComScore)
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5. Pinterest drives twice the website referral traffic of Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ combined. Conversions are a marketer’s best friend. Last year, Pinterest proved its power in driving users from the social network directly to corporate websites — second only to Facebook. (Shareaholic)
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SOCIAL CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
What are people doing on social these days? Discovering new brands, sharing found content, expecting more customer care, performing work tasks, and apparently starting to respond more to social advertising.
6. One in three consumers say social is a way to discover new brands, products, and services. This may not lead to direct attribution on the brand side yet, but it shows the power of brand awareness and reputation in the social consumer lifecycle. (eMarketer)
7. Nearly half (47%) of Internet users share photos or video they found online. If your content resonates with your audience’s interests, they are likely to share and propagate it for you. (Pew)
8. 25% of consumers who complain about products on Facebook or Twitter expect a response within 1 hour. Merely listening is no longer an option. If you don’t respond, you risk disappointing a customer (at least) and may create a negative brand perception. (American Express Open Forum)
9. 100% of business decision-makers use social media for work. According to Forrester, statistically every business decision-maker is using social media and doing so at least
partly for work purposes. (Forrester Research Inc.)
10. 60% of users have clicked on an ad in LinkedIn. We’ve seen much discussion on social advertising’s effectiveness. If LinkedIn’s performance is any indicator, relevant social advertising is starting to truly drive action. (lab42)
BRAND INTENTIONS AND RESULTS
Social media is now firmly in the integrated marketing mix, as brands expand their programs and budgets to reflect its growing importance.
11. 79% of marketers have integrated social media into their traditional marketing activities. Going beyond Paid, Owned, and Earned social, brands are now actively integrating social with traditional marketing and creating a full view of social’s integration within CRM systems. (Social Media Examiner Industry Report)
12. 91% of executives plan to use a more programmatic approach to audience segmentation. Two trends are highlighted here: the rise of audience segmentation and the intent to scale social media through a programmatic approach. This should result in more personalized content and a greater emphasis on building internal infrastructure to insure repeat-able success. (eMarketer)
13. 70% of marketers say that content marketing has increased their brand awareness. Social is an always-on medium. If brands want to reach and resonate with audience members consistently, they must create compelling content all the time. According to iMedia, content marketing is really working to drive brand awareness. (iMedia)
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14. 65% of marketers planned to increase their social advertising spending last year. Advertising on social here to stay. Two out of three marketers planned to increase their social advertising budget last year. And with greater stringency placed on Facebook’s Newsfeed placement, this number will likely rise. (Nielsen)
THE BOTTOM LINE
15. Social media is the top driver for building relationships. 52% of enterprise brands say social media is the top driver for relationship-building and brand engagement. Email was cited half as much, and corporate websites only a quarter as much. Why is this significant? More marketers now realize and embrace social media’s inherent value — building relationships — and are working to create programs that deliver great experiences. As a result, they’ll see happier, more loyal customers; higher awareness; and increased demand. (Spredfast)
Are you ready to make the most of your social strategy and build lasting relationships this year?
Contact [email protected] to get started today
Courtesy of a study conducted by Spredfast
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