Knowing Customer Demographics data for the different social media channels can help smart small business people decide where to spend their marketing dollars. Source for social media usage by age range, total numbers o users and some insights on how to use each channel to reach the proper age range.
I have included relevant dates of the data and sources that I have cited throughout this post. Doing the research I found that a LOT of the common wisdom out there was based on data from up to 4 years ago and obviously the social media landscape has changed dramatically since then.
As with all my customer demographics posts I will keep a running tally here of the date that this post has been updated with relevant information.
Updated October 4, 2019
Social Media Demographic Usage By Age Range
Pew Research did a great study that shows social media usage by age ranges. Some 88% of 18- to 29-year-olds indicate that they use any form of social media. That share falls to 78% among those ages 30 to 49, to 64% among those ages 50 to 64 and to 37% among Americans 65 and older. (March 18, 2018)
As you can see, the highest social media usage overall is by under 30 year olds which includes the Xennials, Gen Y or Millennials, Centennials and Gen Z. The 30-49 age range encompasses the younger Gen Ys and most of the Gen X age range.
Additional Resource :: Customer Demographics – Age Ranges, Generational Names and Numbers
Social Media Usage By State
Super interesting info from Century Link about the popular social stats by state! I am thrilled to see that Pinterest is in second, only to Snapchat!
source Century Link
Official Social Media Customer Counts From The Social Media Platforms
I found that data about the different social media networks was all over the place and wanted to start off with numbers supplied by the networks themselves.
- Official Facebook Statistics 2.23 Billion (June 30,2018)
- Official YouTube Statistics 1 Billion+ (September 2018)
- Official Instagram Statistics 1 Billion+ (September 2018)
- Official LinkedIn Statistics 562 million (September 2018)
- Official Twitter Statistics 335 million (2nd Quarter 2018)
- Official Snapchat Statistics 300 Million (August 2018)
- Official Pinterest Statistics 250,000,000 (September 2018)
It is hard to find super accurate numbers for the different channels. Generally I was able to use Investor Reports and standardized news outlets. Some channels report total number of users and some report active users. This data is a visual representation of the data that I was able to find based on self reporting from the social channels.
Additional Customer Demographics Resources
- Customer Demographics – Age Demographics for Advertising (Updated 2018)
- What are important customer demographics? (updated Aug 2018)
- Customer Demographics – Age Ranges, Generational Names and Numbers
Facebook Customer Demographics
Facebook is the largest social media network by far with double the amount of YouTube which is the next largest. That said, it is important to know who you are trying to reach with your marketing when using Facebook.
Their Customer Demographics have continued to trend downward as younger users are leaving to use sites like YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat (which is having troubles of its own).
Facebook Statistics
Active Users – 2.23 Billion (June 30,2018)
According to Pew, roughly two-thirds of U.S. adults (68%) now report that they are Facebook users, and roughly three-quarters of those users access Facebook on a daily basis.
source statista
Additional Facebook Resources
- Is Facebook for old people? Over-55s flock in as the young leave (Feb 2018 – UK)
- eMarketer estimates that Facebook will generate $21.57 billion in US ad revenues (Jan 2018 – US)
YouTube Customer Demographics
Active Users 1 Billion+ (September 2018)
YouTube is the next largest social media platform being used by “nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults and 94% of 18- to 24-year-olds.” Pew
YouTube is a great marketing platform for business owners who want to get the word out about their business. The types of videos that work well are How Tos, unboxings, entertainment, games, documentaries and personal stories.
One of the interesting things about YouTube is its rise has coincided with the decline of traditional television cable subscribers, which may lead to additional marketing opportunties on this channel.
YouTube Statistics
Additional YouTube Resources
Why YouTube TV Is the Future of Cable TV (June 28,2018)
Instagram Customer Demographics
Active Users 1 Billion+ (September 2018)
Now that the “old dears” have taken over Facebook, teens and early 20 year olds are migrating away from there an onto Instagram (which is also owned by Facebook). According to Pew, 71% 18- to 24-year-old Americans now use Instagram.
Instagram is a visual and video platform that allows for three types of posts, images, short form videos and longer form videos on IGTV which rolled out as a feature in 2018.
Instagram Statistics
Additional Resources Instagram
- Bringing Shopping To Instagram Stories Instagram (June 12, 2018)
LinkedIn Customer Demographics
562 million (September 2018)
LinkedIn has steadfastly declared itself the social media channel for business. Their acquisition by Microsoft in 2016 has increased the focus on SMEs and Corporations.
If you are a small business owner looking to make business connections, LinkedIn can provide a reliable supply of related industry contacts.
LinkedIn Statistics
- LinkedIn contributed revenue of $2.3 billion to Microsoft (2017 Investor Report)
Additional LinkedIn Resources
Twitter Customer Demographics
Active Users – 335 million
Twitter has become a hotbed of political infighting and partisanship. The CEO, Jack Dorsey, was called before congress to answer questions about suppression of conservative political accounts.
Twitter has been purging up to 1,000, 000 fake accounts a day in an effort to stop bots and political intrigue.
There is a base of Twitter users who are there to talk about current events, sports and political topics of the day.
Twitter Statistics
- 18- to 24-year-olds close to half (45%) are Twitter users. Pew (2018)
- Twitter’s Q2 ad revenue grew 23%, to $601 million, with video ads continuing to account for more than half of that. U.S. advertising grew 9%, to $293 million – Source Variety (July 7,2018)
Additional Twitter Resources
- Q&A: How Pew Research Center identified bots on Twitter
- Twitter Users Seem to Widen Political Divide When Met With Opposing Views
Pinterest Customer Demographics
Active Users – 250,000,000 (September 2018)
Pinterest is a self proclaimed visual search engine. The majority of its users are women and there is a shoppable pin component to their marketing offerings.
Both content creators and Ecommerce sellers have found success using Pinterest for business.
Pinterest Statistics
- Pinterest Millennials Report (November 2017)
- Pinterest has more than 175 billion ideas to discover on Pinterest, up 75% since last year. Source Pinterest (September 10, 2018)
Additional Pinterest Resources
- Interesting… Pinterest publishes a legal transparency report
SnapChat Customer Demographics
SnapChat is a peer to peer social network that was extremely popular in 2016 before many of their features were copied by Facebook and Instagram.
While many users have abandoned this social network, it is still popular with younger users, although there is not a very good marketing channel to use for reaching these users.
SnapChat Statistics
- 78% of 18- to 24-year-olds use Snapchat, and a sizeable majority of these users (71%) visit the platform multiple times per day. Pew 2018
Additional SnapChat Resources
- SnapChat News Releases
- Snapchat's decline and the secret joy of internet ghost towns (May 2018)
- A Tale of Two Stories: How Instagram Stole the Ephemeral Content Market from Snapchat Chicago Kent Journal of Intellectual Property (November 2017)
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Thanks to Rapid Tables for their chart and bar graph making software!
