Why Social Media Matters: Impact and Global Reach

Over half of the global population uses social media, and that number continues to grow.

It’s easy for me to convey to clients how crucial social media is to their business, but that doesn’t capture the full picture. I want to include some data to illustrate exactly why social media matters and the impact it can make on your brand.

4.95 Billion - this is the number of people who use social media globally. To put it another way, 61% of the world is on social media—and this number is expected to grow exponentially in the coming years. When you compare the number of people you speak to face-to-face about your business each day to the sheer volume of people you can engage with on social media, the numbers indicate that social media is a massive opportunity to share your brand message with the world.

145 minutes - this is the average time a person spends on social media each day. That amounts to almost 17 hours of social media usage per week. While you may have 1-hour long meetings with potential clients, social media offers a significantly longer timeframe within which your brand can be introduced to the right people. And while the hustle and bustle of life usually only allows for short elevator pitches, social media provides a chance to tell your brand’s story in its entirety and engage people’s interest on a deeper level.

84% - this is the percentage of people aged 18-29 globally who use social media, representing almost an entire age group. This number conveys the trajectory that social media use is following, with younger generations using social media even more. It’s a strong indicator that social media usage will continue to rise, and it will become increasingly more influential in our lives in the future.

When you take these staggering numbers into account, it’s easy to see why being on social media matters so much on a global scale. But you might also ask the question—what does this mean for my local business? Think of these numbers as a pool in which to narrow down new customers by location, demographic, and interest, just by sharing high-quality, targeted, and searchable content regularly.

Keep in mind that over half of your current customers and clients are statistically using social media, so it’s an effective way to nurture that business relationship and strengthen your position as an expert in your field each time you share content. As a business owner, you may not be able to be everywhere at once, but you can be at the top of the feed and top of mind each day on social media.

Social media is a marketing tool with huge impact on a global scale.