Fifty percent of Americans are active on at least one social media website, a report from Pew Global found. The United States has one of the the highest volumes of social use in the world, which suggests every U.S. business, organization and cause can find an audience through social media marketing.
According to Pew, Israel is the nation with the highest percentage of its population using social media with 53 percent saying they are active on various platforms.
In terms of demographic breakdowns, 80 percent of 18- to 29-year-old Americans use social media, 62 percent of 30- to 49-year olds do and 26 percent of those 50 or over are active on the channel. Education seems to factor into social activity, as 61 percent of social media users in the U.S. have at least a bachelor’s degree compared to 45 percent who do not, and the remaining 4 percent chose not to answer.
The presence of young, educated adults on these platforms means businesses targeting them should be aggressive with social media marketing.
The study also found that 43 percent of Americans who own a mobile phone regularly access the internet on their handsets. As smartphones become more common, it’s likely that this number will rise, as will access to mobile social media applications.
Brafton reported earlier this year that social media marketing campaigns are becoming even more valuable as the amount of people accessing Twitter, Facebook and other networks on their smartphones continues to rise. More than 70 million Americans access social networks on their phones at least once per month.
