If there is one thing that is constantly changing and shifting, it is social media. Social media is an area of your marketing efforts that can never be ignored. Getting hold of some hard stats and data can make or break your company both in the near future as well as in the long term. Some recent social media research was just published in Entrepreneur magazine that will allow you to gain the insight, and the shock, you will need to carve out your future success. Here are few excerpts taken directly from that research:
Marketers are spending more on social media advertising; with social media ad spend amounting to more than $89 billion in 2019.
According to projections, this ad spend will see an annual growth rate of 8.7% and likely reach $102 billion by 2020.
Mobile users contribute to a majority of social advertising revenue. In fact, 94% of the Facebook advertising revenue for Q3 of 2019 came from mobile.
The average ad spend per internet user also sees a gradual increase on mobile, jumping from $13.49 in 2018 to $15.40 in 2019. In 2020, advertisers will likely spend $16.85 per mobile internet user.
There’s a significant increase in adoption of new digital video ad formats like shoppable ads and Stories ads. And marketers are increasing their digital video budgets by 25% year-over-year.
In fact, social network video ad spending accounted for 28.7% of total video ad spending, at $10.35 billion. We should expect to see a further increase in this number in 2020, as marketers invest around $12.48 on social media video ads.
Pinterest experiences the highest increase in advertising reach with a 4.1% quarter-on-quarter increase. Instagram comes second with a 2.9% increase, and Twitter comes close with a 2.5% increase. LinkedIn sees a 2.2% increase in advertising reach quarter-on-quarter, while Facebook sees a 0.4% increase.
Social media helps amplify transparency, which can prove to be rewarding for brands in spite of the challenges it brings. In fact, 53% of consumers say they’re likely to buy from brands that are transparent on social. And 86% of Americans say transparency on social media is more important than ever before, which means they’re willing to take their business to a competitor if they see a lack of transparency.
Admitting mistakes, giving an honest response to customer queries, providing product/service pricing and showcasing manufacturing practices are some of the top ways for brands to demonstrate transparency via social.
53% of consumers expect brands to be transparent about product/service changes and company values on social media.
67% of consumers consider video to be the most transparent type of social media posts.
Social consumers expect brands to be more socially conscious, with 70% saying that it’s important for brands to take a public stand on social and political issues.
-Written by Kevin Sawyer
