Understanding Social Media Demographics
No matter the industry you’re in or who you are trying to target, one thing we know for sure is that they are somewhere online. So where are they hanging out and how do you find them?
One question that I get a lot is: ‘should I be on all the platforms to get the most reach?’
With so many options available from Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tik tok, Snapchat, Discord, Reddit—the list goes on—it’s hard not to feel pressure to get your business onto every new platform that comes up.
But let’s be real here, you only have so much time to put into your social media presence each week. Where should you be spending that time?
The answer is: Not on every single platform.
“Just as you don’t need to be on every single TV channel, I don’t believe a brand needs to be on every single social media in one big way.” – Shiv Singh, marketing author
You should be using your time on the platforms where your target audience is already hanging out. Knowing your target audience is the first step, and since that’s an article all on it’s own, check out this post by HubSpot on How to find your target audience for the quick version.
And before you skip over that article and think: ‘My target audience is everyone’—think again. Choosing ‘everyone’ is the quickest way to target ‘no one’ and spend a lot of fruitless hours on social media.
So let’s take a look at where you’ll find your target audience online:
You may wonder why it’s so important to use the platforms where your audience already exists, so it’s important to remember that these platforms have invested heavily in creating the perfect environment for specific demographics based on the way they like to digest information.
According to the Hootsuite Global report, there are 3.81 Billion unique users on social media. In March 2020, we saw a dramatic change in the top downloaded apps, as users started spending a lot more time on their computers and their phones.
Each of these applications is a way for you to talk directly with your consumers in a time when they are increasingly available to engage with.
Now that you know where each demographic is hanging out online and how often they’re picking up their phone to check each of these apps, it’s time to get planning your content!
Always remember that your content should be 80% educational, informative, entertaining and engaging while 20% should be sales related.
People buy from those they trust, so spend your time on the platforms your audience is already comfortable on to increase that trust and engagement BEFORE you plan to sell to them.
Social media is about building relationships and having conversations. Know who your people are, find them and engage with them.