​Pew Internet breaks down social media tendencies by demographic.

More than 80 percent of businesses practice content marketing and use social media channels to distribute custom media to new and existing customers. As marketers focus on developing editorial calendars, creating audience personas and directing branded content delivery, they may forget to investigate which social networks reach which demographics best.

A new Pew Internet Research report found that consumers aged 18 to 29 are most active on social networks. That shouldn’t come as a surprise, but what might pique marketers’ interests is women spend far more time on networks than men, except on Twitter. User insights can help marketers discover where they should publish social media content.

According to the data, 67 percent of respondents use Facebook – 62 percent male and 72 percent female. When looking deeper into the findings, 73 percent of high-income consumers (those making $75k or more) use Facebook. Luxury brands may find it easier to target the right users on the network. The platform is also ideal for city-based businesses, with 72 percent of the network’s users coming from urban locations.

As for Twitter, Pew noted that only 16 percent of survey respondents use the microblogging site. Males account for the majority of users, but females are close behind. The study also discovered that African American and Hispanic respondents use Twitter much more than white consumers, and urban members (20 percent) nearly double rural users (12 percent) on the network.

Brafton reported that targeted social media marketing can lead to an increase in sales, and Pew Internet data can help marketers develop effective strategies to capitalize on the reach of individual networks. Whether publishing web content on Facebook walls or tweeting links to blog content, brands need to know where their audiences spend most of their time and create strategies accordingly.

Ted Karczewski is an Executive Communications Associate at Brafton. He works to develop his own voice and apply his passions to the evolving world of SEO and content marketing, but he doesn't shy away from writing for fun. After graduating from Suffolk University, Ted used his Communications degree to test out Sports Journalism before Marketing at Brafton.