Most of the connected world continues to grow faster than it did pre-pandemic – says report

We Are Social, the socially led creative agency, and Hootsuite, the global leader in social media management, have released the Digital 2022 report, their latest annual report that highlights the most notable global findings on digital trends and social media.

 

As the pandemic continues to have a major impact worldwide, Digital 2022 shows the growth of social media users continuing to trend upwards. There are now 4.62 billion social media users around the world, representing year-on-year growth of more than 10 percent (424 million new users) since this time last year. The number of social media users is now equivalent to more than 58 percent of the world’s total population.

Social media took the largest share of connected media time in 2021 and people say they are spending more time on social channels each day than they did the previous year, at 2 hours and 27 minutes. Facebook remains the world’s most used social platform, however YouTube is fast closing the gap, with its audience growing twice as fast as Facebook’s – YouTube has 2.56 billion active users, equivalent to 88% of the latest published Facebook total. The third most used one is Whatsapp, followed by Instagram, whose audience was up more than 6% (85 million users) in just the last 90 days. TikTok growth is also accelerating rapidly: up 7.3% (60 million users) over the same period.

Digital 2022 shows internet adoption and use hit new highs last year. As of January 2022, there were 4.95 billion internet users globally – some 62.5% of the world’s population. This is an increase of 4% year-on-year – 192 million people. Average daily time spent using the internet, meanwhile, was almost 7 hours across all devices globally – up 1% (4 minutes) year on year.

Headlines about the Australian market:
● The number of social media users in Australia is equivalent to roughly 82.7% of the total population, 2.7% more than last year
● Australian internet users aged 16 to 64 spend on average 1 hour 46 minutes using social media each day – 11 more minutes compared to 2021
● 39.4% of Australian internet users aged 16 to 64 watch how-to videos, tutorial videos, or educational videos each week
● Over 3 in 4 Australian internet users aged 16 to 64 play video games
● 11.1% of Australian internet users aged 16 to 64 own some form of cryptocurrency
● Almost 1 in 3 Australian internet users aged 16 to 64 use of social networks for brand research
● Each TikTok user spends an average 23.4 hours per month using the TikTok app, almost 3 hours more than the global average of 19.6 hours
● Over half of Australian internet users aged 16 to 64 buy something online each week
● 7 in 10 Australian internet users aged 16 to 64 paid for digital content in the past month

Says Suzie Shaw, CEO at We Are Social Sydney: ”Once again, the Digital 2022 report highlights how social media is a key channel for brands to engage their audience, with significant growth both globally and locally, across key metrics like penetration and time spent. Australians in particular use an average of 6 different platforms every month, with TikTok seeming to grab their attention more than others: TikTok users spent nearly 24 hours per month using the platform’s mobile app during 2021, over 30% longer than Youtube. We’re anticipating a lot of platform innovation in 2022, which presents great opportunities for brands.”

Additional headlines in Digital 2022 include:

● Contrary to stereotypes, the world’s internet users are not averse to paying for digital content. More than 7 in 10 working-age internet users (71.5 percent) say that they pay for some form of digital content each month. The world’s internet users spent almost USD $300 billion on digital content in 2021, with more than half of this spent on video games.
● Social media advertising effectiveness was demonstrated by a growing array of data over the past 12 months. More than 1 in 4 internet users aged 16 to 64 (27.6%) discover new brands, products, and services via social media ads.
● Ecommerce continues its upwards trend – powered in part by the recent and rapid rise of social commerce. Nearly 6 in 10 working age internet users (58.4%) now buy something online every week. New additions to this year’s report, meanwhile, show social commerce accelerating at an ever-increasing rate. Ads in Facebook Marketplace now reach more than 560 million users each month, equating to more than a quarter of the platform’s total ad reach, for example, while advertisers can now reach more than 187 million users with ads in the Instagram Shop tab each month.
● The number of people who own cryptocurrencies has jumped by more than a third (37.8 percent) since this time last year. More than 1 in 10 working-age internet users now own some form of cryptocurrency.
● The gaming world has rapidly grown in the last year while the motivation and behaviour of gamers also significantly evolved as interactions and online conversations grew in prominence. The daily time spent using a games console rose to 1 hour and 12 minutes. Meanwhile, more than 8 internet users out of 10 aged 16-64 declare to play video games on any device around the world.

Says Nathan McDonald, co-founder and group chief executive, We Are Social: “We are seeing rapid changes in culture, the economy and society more broadly. The huge shifts in behaviour witnessed over the last 12 months are now permanent, and are set to accelerate even faster. More people than ever are spending time online: beyond social connections, information and entertainment, the growth of social commerce, gaming and spending on cryptocurrencies and digital goods is evidence of real cultural change. It’s never been more important for marketers to have a deep understanding of online communities, cultures and subcultures.”

Says Maggie Lower, CMO of Hootsuite: “As we see the number of social media users continue to grow, it’s clear that social will continue to be where organizations build communities and engage directly across all demographics—tailoring their message and approach based on the audience they are trying to reach. I am excited to see how brands evolve with social trends as they leverage their platforms to be advocates and community builders. Through the data we glean from our Digital 2022 report, we will help guide our customers to the right social media platform for each audience. The pandemic has brought to light how social media is intrinsically intertwined with how we live, work, operate, and shop. In a time when social distance regulations and non-essential business closures impact businesses everywhere, social commerce is often one of the only ways for brands to stay open and connected with consumers. If brands and organizations want to remain relevant, they will need to digitize and implement a social commerce strategy.”

View the report at here.