1. Not just for teenagers: The fastest growing demographic on Twitter is the 55 – 64 year age bracket.

  • This demographic has grown 79% since 2012.
  • The 45-54 year age bracket is the fastest growing demographic on both Facebook and Google+.
  • For Facebook, this group has jumped 46%.
  • For Google+, 56%.

Rethink it: Keep older users in mind when using social media, particularly on these three platforms. Our age makes a difference to our taste and interests, so if you’re focusing on younger users with the content you post, you could be missing an important demographic.

2. 189 million of Facebook users are “mobile only”

  •  Mobile use generates 30% of Facebook’s ad revenue as well.
  • This is a 7% increase from the end of 2012.

 Rethink it: It’s worth considering how your content displays on mobile devices and smaller screens before posting it, particularly if your target market could include many mobile users.

3. YouTube reaches more US adults aged 18 – 34 than any cable network

Rethink it: If you’ve been putting off adding video to your strategy, now’s the time to give it a go. You could start small with simple five-minute videos explaining what your company does or introducing your team.

4. Every second, two new members join LinkedIn

Rethink it: LinkedIn is definitely worth your company’s attention. Making your group or community a great source of information will help you to make the most of the growing userbase.

5. Yet, LinkedIn has a lower % of active users than Pinterest, Google+, Twitter and Facebook

Rethink it: This means you’re probably not going to have as good a response with participatory content on LinkedIn, like contests or polls, as you might on Facebook or Twitter. So, work smarter and tailor content for your selected channels.

6. Social media has overtaken porn as the #1 activity on the web

Rethink it: Social media carries more weight than ever. It’s clearly not a fad, or a phase. It continues to grow as a habit, and new platforms continue to appear and develop. Putting time and effort into your social media strategy clearly makes sense in light of these stats.

7. 93% of marketers use social media for business

Rethink it: If you’re struggling to make your strategy work, or you just want some advice, you don’t have to go it alone. If 93% of marketers are using social media for business, you too can find someone to give you a hand.

8. 25% of smartphone owners aged 18 – 44 say they can’t recall the last time their smartphone wasn’t next to them

Rethink it: If 25% of people aged 18–44 can’t remember not having their phone with them, there are probably very few times when they’re not connected to the web in some way. This also means that you’ll always have an audience.

9. Even though 62% of marketers blog or planned to blog in 2013, only 9% of US marketing companies employ a full time blogger

Rethink it: Blogging for your business has lots of advantages: you can control your company blog, setting the tone and using it to market your product, share company news or provide interesting information for your customers. Without a full-time blogger though, the pressure to produce high-quality content consistently will be a lot higher. It’s important to realise how big a task it can be to run a full-time content strategy without a full-time content creator.

10. 25% of Facebook users don’t bother with privacy settings

Rethink it: We’ve seen a lot of news about social media companies and privacy. However, assuming that all of your customers are thinking along the same lines could be a big mistake. Remember that your customers might have very different priorities than what you expect.