Find out the most recent information about how customers are using social media. Learn which platform has risen to the top and how it will affect brands.
A recent Sprout Social Consumer Pulse poll indicates that social media platform usage is changing again, with implications for companies.
Based on the latest data, Instagram (65%) has narrowly surpassed Facebook (64%) as the most popular platform among the 2,059 respondents polled.
Notably, 1,009 US and 1,050 UK customers who follow at least five businesses on social media and have at least one social media account participated in this poll.
This sample isn’t worldwide, then. Furthermore, the survey’s sample isn’t unique to both countries because the US population (335 million) is nearly five times higher than the UK’s (68 million). Additionally, the results are skewed by concentrating on customers who follow at least five businesses on social media.
However, when categorized by age group, there are notable variations in usage, which marketers should examine and consider for their social media initiatives.
For instance, 519 respondents belonged to the Gen Z (18–24) demographic, 757 to the Millennial (25–40) demographic, 502 to the Gen X (41–56) demographic, and 281 to the Baby Boomer (57–75) demographic.
From May 17–27, 2024, Cint performed an online customer survey on behalf of Sprout Social.
Age Group Utilization of Social Media Platforms
Breaking down by age reveals:
. Gen Z uses Instagram most frequently, followed by TikTok, Snapchat, and Facebook.
. Millennials use Instagram most frequently, followed by Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube.
. Gen X uses Facebook most frequently, followed by Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.
. Baby Boomers use Facebook most frequently, followed by YouTube, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter).
Notably, 51% of the consumers polled want to take a “social media detox” in the upcoming six months, while 45% have already done so in the last six months.
Therefore, it would seem that a sizable portion of the “consumers” who follow at least five companies on social media require brief pauses from “consuming” for several reasons, such as mental health, feeling overburdened, or wanting to consider how they use social media.
Sprout Social’s Q2 2024 Consumer Pulse survey also found:
Over the past six months, Instagram Reels (83%), Instagram Stories (81%), and TikTok posts (78%) have garnered the highest level of engagement from Gen Z. This sector predicts that over the next six months, it will be most engaged with TikTok postings (75.5%), Instagram Reels (74%), and Instagram Stories (74%), despite TikTok’s unclear future in the US.
In the past six months, millennials have shown the most significant level of engagement with TikTok posts (68%), Instagram Reels (77%), and Instagram Stories (77%). Over the next six months, this sector predicts they will most engage with TikTok postings (66%) and Instagram Stories (75%).
Gen X users have been the most active on Facebook over the last six months, spending 67% of their time viewing videos, 59% on Instagram Reels, and 59% on Instagram Stories. This industry forecasts that it will be most engaged with
Facebook videos (59%), Instagram Stories (60%), and Instagram Reels (59%), throughout the next six months.
Over the past six months, Baby Boomers have shown the highest level of engagement with Facebook videos (61%), Facebook Live (41%), Instagram Reels (41%), and Instagram Stories (41%). Over the next six months, this sector
predicts that they will be most engaged with Facebook video (67%), Facebook Live (47%), Instagram Reels (46%), and Instagram Stories (42%).
It might seem strange that YouTube Shorts, which have an average of over 70 billion views every day, were left out of the study results above.
However, as we previously said, the platform’s recommendation engine displays movies based on a particular user’s viewing. On the other hand, Sprout Social characterizes engagement as any social media exchange between a business and its intended audience. This includes activities like clicking on links, sharing material, and leaving comments demonstrating how engaged a viewer is with a brand’s content.
Thus, the sample’s skew and other key performance indicators (KPIs) may explain this apparent disparity.
The Brand Content Formats That Customers Find Most Interesting
These are the results of Sprout Social’s Q2 2024 Consumer Pulse survey:
. “Edutainment,” which educates consumers about a product or service in a fun way (65.5%).
. Posts using memes (40%).
. Serialized content (38%).
. One-off video skits (38%).
. Interactive content like polls and stickers (34%).
Furthermore, the poll revealed that most consumers agree that production value does influence whether they
connect with a brand’s content, despite what marketers may have heard about the appeal of “lo-fi content,”
which is purposefully raw, unpolished, and honest.
Many customers who participated in the poll concur that artificial intelligence (AI) will make disinformation more of a
problem in the future and is adding to the already astounding amount of content on social media.
Disclosure of AI-generated content Is Needed.
Furthermore, the majority of consumers polled concur that social media material produced by AI should be revealed, although they disagree somewhat on who should be in charge of doing so.
The new evidence indicates that AI-generated material may harm customer purchasing decisions despite prior
research suggesting that it might be visually appealing or amusing.
Regarding the belief that social networks (29%) or companies (33%) should disclose when artificial intelligence
creates social content, consumers are evenly divided. Only 6% of respondents think that AI-generated content should be made public.
Furthermore, 31% of customers are neither more nor less inclined to purchase from a business that shares
AI-generated material on social media, compared to 46% of consumers who are less likely to do so.
Additionally, the latest poll of 2,059 US and UK consumers discovered:
. 83% of consumer agree that AI-generated content will make their social feeds more saturated than they already are.
. 80% agree that AI-generated content will add to misinformation on social media.
Customers Who Unfollow Brands Most Frequently
In conclusion, the Q2 2024 Consumer Pulse survey by Sprout Social revealed that 43% of consumers are
inclined to unfollow firms whose content strategy needs to be more original, meaning that the material has become monotonous or uninspired.
Additionally, 42% of customers are inclined to unfollow firms if they collaborate with the “wrong” influencer—that is,
if “they partner with influencers that don’t align with my values.”
Though it’s not a huge deal-breaker, it’s important to note that younger consumers are more inclined to unfollow
influencers who publish too seldom (17% Gen Z vs. 10.5% all consumers). On the other hand, aged customers
are more offended by excessive posting (24% Baby Boomers, 21% Gen X, 16% Millennials, and 14% Gen Z).
