Social media has been a part of everyday Australian life for years. It’s used to share and capture the moments that matter and to connect with people near and far. Businesses have also had their place on social media for almost a decade, transforming how they engage with their customers, how they portray their brand and how they find new customers. 

And with 82% of all Australians actively engaging with or contributing to social media in the past month, there’s no denying the potential that an active social media presence can have for Australian businesses. It’s no longer a matter of simply having a social media presence, it’s now essential to have an active and engaging presence on social media. 

However, not all businesses have the in-house resources to create and share content across all the available channels. That’s why it’s important to choose the correct social media channels and only have an active presence on the platforms that are truly relevant both to you and your audience. 

We’ve put together a summary of the top social media channels in use in Australia in 2020, including demographics and content types, to help your business make the right choice.

Facebook

The original purpose of Facebook was to stay connected with friends and family. Whilst this remains true, it has evolved over time to also help people:

• Keep up to date with the latest news
• Share and consume entertaining, informative or inspiring content 
• Connect with brands and research products
• Join subgroups and communities
• Make complaints/contact customer service

Facebook allows brands to share the broadest types of content.

Usage

Monthly active users: 17,000,000

• Facebook is the second most used social media platform in Australia (after YouTube).
• The average user likes 17 posts, likes 1 new fan page, makes 10 comments, shares 1 post and clicks on 21 ads in the past month.
• The average organic post reach for a fan page is 7.6% of the total audience.
• The average engagement rate for Facebook posts is 3.10%, broken down into the following content types:
  • Video posts: 5.35%
  • Image posts: 5.10%
  • Status posts: 3.12%
  • Link posts: 2.83%

While link posts have the lowest engagement rate, this is likely influenced by the fact that link posts are the most common post type and therefore bring the overall engagement rate down.

Demographics

25-34 year olds make up the largest demographic of Facebook users, followed by 35-44 year olds, and 18-24 year olds. 

Content types

The primary content types on Facebook are:

• Video
• Images
• Links
• Status Updates

The most popular content type is video, making up 81% of all content shared on Facebook, and outperforming all other content types in terms of engagement. Inspirational, funny, and practical content generates the most engagement. 

Your brand should use Facebook if:

• You’re committed to posting regular content
• You’re able to create and generate video and image content 
• You want to reach a wide and broad audience

Instagram

The primary purpose of Instagram is to share and consume visual content that is informative, inspiring and entertaining. It is a platform that allows users to share their lifestyles and allows businesses to tell a visual story about their brand. 

Usage

Monthly active users: 9,000,000

• Instagram is the fourth most used social media platform in Australia, with 62% of users logging in each day.
• Brands on Instagram receive approximately 10x more engagement on Instagram than Facebook. 
• Instagram posts with a location receive 79% more engagement.
• On average, there are 4 billion likes each day on Instagram.
• The engagement rate typically decreases as the size of an audience grows.  Pages with 1-5k users see a 5.60% engagement rate, compared to pages with 5-20k users (2.43%), or 20-100k users (2.15%).
• Instagram Stories reach an average of 8.4% of followers, whereas Instagram Feed posts reach an average of 26.6% of followers. 

Demographics

People aged 25-34 are the largest user group, making up 33% of all users in Australia. The app is used slightly more by women, making up 56.4% of all Instagram users.

Content types

There are two key content types on Instagram:

• Video
• Images

Both of these content types can be shared through:

• Instagram Feed posts
• Instagram Stories

Instagram videos receive 21.2% higher interactions than single photos, and 18.6% more interactions than carousels. Stories are great for ongoing engagement with your audience, but feed posts still add the most value to your content, have a wider reach and have a longer shelf life. 

Your brand should use Instagram if:

• You’re committed to posting regular content
• You’re able to create and generate high-quality image content regularly 
• You want to reach a younger audience

LinkedIn

The primary purpose of LinkedIn is professional networking and career development. Brands use this platform to post jobs, showcase their employees and work, and share aspirational posts. 

Usage

Monthly active users: 5,500,000

• LinkedIn is the 9th most frequently used social media platform in Australia.
• 2 million posts, articles and videos are published on LinkedIn every day.
• Only 1% of users post content weekly 
• On average, users spend 17 minutes a month on LinkedIn. 
• LinkedIn Pages with complete information get 30% more views compared to others.
• Businesses that post 20 times per month reach at least 60% of their unique audience. 
• Links to YouTube video plays directly in the LinkedIn feed and typically gives a 75% higher share rate.

Demographics

25-34 year olds make up the biggest segment of Linked users, accounting for 58%, followed by 35-54 year olds (21%). Just over 57% of LinkedIn users in Australia are male.

Content types

LinkedIn has the same content types as Facebook:

• Video
• Images
• Links
• Status Updates

The primary difference is that YouTube videos shared on LinkedIn will autoplay in the feed, meaning you don’t need to upload a separate video file. Image posts result in a 98% increase in comments. 

Your brand should use LinkedIn if:

• You’re committed to posting regular content
• You’re able to create and generate regular career-based content regularly 
• You want to reach a professional market

Twitter

The primary purpose of Twitter is to share and consume short bites of news, information and content. For brands, it’s an opportunity to establish an area of expertise or knowledge, as well as really develop a brand personality. 

Usage

Monthly active users: 5,300,000

• Twitter is the 6th most used social media platform in Australia.
• 92% of companies post more than once a day, 42% post 1-5 times a day, and 19% post 6-10 times a day.
• Twitter use in Australia is on the decline for both personal and business use. 

Demographics

People aged 18-29 are the largest user group, making up 36% of all users. Men use Twitter slightly more than women, accounting for 53% of all Twitter users. 

Content types

The primary content types on Twitter are:

• Video
• Image
• Link
• Status

Tweets with images receive 18% more click-throughs, 89% more likes, and 150% more retweets than status tweets. However, tweets with videos are 6x more likely to be retweeted than Tweets with photos.

Your brand should use Twitter if:

• You’re committed to posting regular content
• You’re able to create and generate news-worthy statements and content regularly
• You want to join online discussions and trends

But don’t worry if this seems like too much to handle! Start off by thinking about which channel will be the most valuable for your businesses and focus on that. You’re better off getting it right on one platform than spreading yourself thin across them all.

If you found this information useful, follow IGNITE on Instagram for more tips and tricks. 

If you already have an established social media presence, and you’re looking for a strategic approach to digital marketing to elevate your brand, get in touch. 

Source:

https://www.statista.com/statistics/680581/australia-facebook-users-by-age/
https://wearesocial.com/au/digital-2020-australia
https://www.socialmedianews.com.au/social-media-statistics-australia-march-2020/
https://napoleoncat.com/stats/
https://www.smperth.com/resources/instagram/2020-instagram-statistics/
https://www.talkwalker.com/blog/social-media-statistics-australia
https://phlanx.com/engagement-calculator
https://www.exalteddigital.com/social-media-statistics-world-australia/
https://www.rivaliq.com/blog/instagram-stories-benchmark-report/