Here are more Australia social media statistics for 2020 in Civic Web Media’s now traditional breakdown of the most popular platforms and what this means for digital marketing in the year ahead.

Most popular platforms by number of unique monthly visitors – January 2020

1. Facebook – 16 million
2. YouTube – 15 million
3. Instagram – 9 million
4. WhatsApp – 7 million
5. Snapchat – 6.4 million
6. WordPress – 5.8 million
7. LinkedIn – 5.5 million
8. Twitter – 5.3 million
9. Tumblr – 3.7 million
10. Tinder – 3 million

Statistics compiled by SocialMediaNews.com.au for January 2020. Source: Vivid Social – Social Media Agency. Figures correct as of 31/01/20.

Social media statistics 2020

• Social media in Australia continues to grow at a significant rate, the number of users increasing by 5.9% in 2019 (Talkwalker)
• Young adults aged 18–35 account for more than 75% of Australian social media users (Talkwalker)
• Image and video sharing platforms such as Instagram and Snapchat are the fastest growing (Roy Morgan)
• Chinese social media apps such as WeChat, RenRen and Weibo are also growing rapidly in Australia’s Chinese community, with WeChat poised to enter the top 10 this year (Roy Morgan)
• Google Plus was closed down in 2019, though it never had much of a following in Australia

Top 10 social networks in Australia 2020

1. Facebook

16,000,000 unique active monthly users

Despite a campaign to “delete Facebook” after the company was involved in high-profile data scandals, more Australians continue to sign up for the social network, which has now reached 16 million active users (up from 15 million in 2019).

60% of Australia is on Facebook and 1 in 2 people check the site or app at least once daily.

Facebook’s user base is strong across all age demographics, but especially among 25–39 year olds. Teenagers are the most likely to shun Facebook for younger alternatives.

With such a huge audience, Facebook is usually the first port of call for businesses getting started in social media marketing, with 9 in 10 Australian businesses having Facebook accounts. Facebook posts with videos have the highest rate of engagement.

2. YouTube

15,000,000 unique monthly visitors

The world’s biggest video sharing platform is also the most visited website in Australia after Google, according to Alexa.

While it takes second place to Facebook in the social apps, it’s the number one for Generation Z Australians (aged 14–27), according to the most recent Roy Morgan Single Source survey. Use of YouTube generally declines with age.

Between Facebook and YouTube, video marketing is one of the most engaging types of content that brands can create. In 2019, the top 5 search queries on Facebook in Australia were: Songs, Music, Fortnite, IT and Kids.

3. Instagram

9,000,000 active monthly users

After rapid growth in 2019, Instagram has stabilised as Australia’s third favourite social media site in 2020.

Like YouTube, Instagram users are more likely to be younger. More than two thirds (68%) of Generation Z and over half (52%) of Millennials use the image-based platform, compared to less than one third (32%) of Generation X (Roy Morgan Single Source).

Instagram users are more likely to follow brands than Facebook users, as long as those brands post worthwhile content. Almost half of Australian businesses (46%) use Instagram, according to the most recent Yellow Social Media Report.

Instagram made drastic changes in 2019 when it removed Like counts and made follower counts less prominent to reduce social pressure on users. It also launched Instagram Checkout, to make transactions easier, and Creator Accounts, to support the lucrative influencer marketing industry. It remains to be seen how much of an impact these changes will have on Instagram marketing in 2020.

Want to start or grow your Instagram account in 2020? Find out everything you need to know about hashtags.

4. WhatsApp

7,000,000 active users

Since it was acquired by Facebook, WhatsApp exploded in popularity but now remains stable with approximately seven million Australian users per month in 2020. It’s the country’s second most popular social media messaging app after Facebook Messenger.

5. Snapchat

6,400,000 active monthly users

Another non-mover, Snapchat has matured at a stable 6.4 million monthly users. More impressively, 4.5 million people use the app every day, averaging 36 times per week.

Around half (49%) of social media users aged 18–29 are on Snapchat, the app being used less by older audiences. Like Instagram, it’s used by more females (55%) than males (45%).

6. WordPress

5,800,000 monthly users

Australia’s favourite CMS platform for creating websites and blogs, WordPress hasn’t gained or lost substantial users in 2020. It remains the top choice for its ease of use, customisable features and, most of all, the fact that it’s free.

7. LinkedIn

5,500,000 active monthly users

The first change in the social media ranking for 2020, LinkedIn has now overtaken Twitter with around one million new users year on year. The website reports that around 10 million Australians have registered accounts on LinkedIn, though just over half are active every month.

The B2B platform is used by 73% of large businesses but fewer SMBs. Users are more likely to be male (53% vs 47%).

8. Twitter

5,300,000 active monthly users

It continues to drop in the rankings, but Twitter gained more than half a million users in Australia in 2020. The site is overwhelmingly male, with almost 1.8 males to every female, and is mainly used by people in their 30s. Australian users say they check Twitter 23 times per week on average.

While it may not be the most effective platform for reaching your target audience, the speed and brevity of tweets makes Twitter popular with large businesses, which are more likely to use Twitter marketing than small businesses (60% vs. 14%).

9. Tumblr

3,700,000 monthly users

After losing users last year, following the introduction of stricter rules such as the ban on adult content, Tumblr is stable in ninth place for 2020. The image sharing and blogging site is mainly used by women, and around two-thirds of users (66%) are under 35.

10. Tinder

3,000,000 users

The world’s most popular dating app, Tinder was downloaded more times than any other app in Australia last year and is used by an estimated three million Australians every month.

While business accounts aren’t permitted on the app, advertising is. Depending on your product or service, you may find a suitable audience here.

For more industry news and online marketing tips, follow the Civic Web Media Blog.

Find out more in Civic Web Media‘s annual breakdown of the most popular social media sites in Australia as we begin 2019.

Update: Australia’s most popular social media sites 2020

How many Australians use social media in 2019?

The latest Yellow Social Media Report released in June last year found that almost 9 in 10 people (88%) have a social media profile in Australia. This figure is up from 79% in 2017 and 69% in 2016, showing remarkable growth over a relatively short period.

The average Australian now owns 3.5 internet-enabled devices, with most preferring to use their smartphones to access social media. 60% of people say they use the internet more than five times per day.

How do customers interact with businesses on social media?

The Yellow report found that 44% of consumers follow brands on social media. This increases to 52% for females and 65% for people aged 18-29.

More than 50% of social media users say they value brand interactions on social networks and are more likely to trust a business if it offers engaging and relevant content on a regular basis.

Discounts (62%) and giveaways (51%) are the most popular reasons people follow brands.

Top 10 social networks in Australia 2019

Statistics compiled by SocialMediaNews.com.au for December 2018. Source: Vivid Social – Social Media Agency. Figures correct as of 31/12/18.

1. Facebook

15,000,000 unique active monthly users

Facebook’s dominance and popularity have remained stable since this time last year, despite the organisation’s high-profile data scandals in early 2018 that saw users worldwide being urged to ‘Delete Facebook’. Around 60% of the Australian population has a Facebook account and around 1 in 2 people check it every day.

According to Yellow, 91% of Aussies who use social media are on Facebook, which includes more women than men (95% vs 88%). The average user spends almost 10 hours a week on the platform and more than a quarter (28%) watch live streaming videos on Facebook Live.

More Australian businesses use and advertise on Facebook than any other social platform – around 9 in 10 SMBs and large businesses. This connects them with Australia’s biggest online audience.

2. YouTube

15,000,000 unique monthly visitors

More than half of the population (53%) watches videos on YouTube. This includes slightly more men than women (56% vs 50%) and 65% of people under 30. 46% of people share videos or photos on social media.

Video is one of the most engaging types of content for consumers, but most businesses are still hesitant to produce video content due to the time and effort involved in making it look professional.

3. Instagram

9,000,000 active monthly users

Instagram is still Australia’s favourite image-sharing website, retaining a stable user base over the past 12 months after having doubled its users the previous year. The site is more popular with women than men (44% vs 34%).

Instagram users are more likely to follow brands than users of other social networks at 44% (compared to 39% of Facebook users). Formerly more popular with SMBs, the number of large businesses advertising on Instagram has more than doubled in the past year from 20% to 46% according to the Yellow survey of Australian businesses.

Read more: Hashtag hacks: Everything you need to know about hashtags

4. WhatsApp

7,000,000 active users

Steadily rising through the ranks – gaining two million users each year for the past two years – WhatsApp is Australia’s second most popular social media messaging service after parent company Facebook’s own Messenger.

5. Snapchat

6,400,000 active monthly users

Snapchat is once again the fastest growing social media app in Australia, rising two places from last year’s count. As well as its high monthly user base, more than 4.5 million Australians use Snapchat every day – around 36 times per week on average.

Snapchat is more popular with younger demographics, with almost half (49%) of 18-29 year olds on social media using the platform. It’s also used by more males than females (28% vs 17%).

6. WordPress.com

5,800,000 monthly users

Australia’s favourite CMS platform had a modest gain of 100,000 users over the past year. Its free business model, ease of use and extensive customisation makes WordPress the go-to option for many bloggers and SMBs creating websites and blogs.

7. Twitter

4,700,000 active monthly users

Twitter is gaining popularity in Australia, rising from 9th place and 3,000,000 users this time last year. Unlike most social networks, Twitter is most widely used by people in their 30s. It’s also much more popular with men than women (26% vs 13%). Aussie Twitter users check the site 23 times per week on average.

Twitter’s speed and ease of use make it popular with large businesses, of which 60% advertise on the platform. Small businesses are much less enthusiastic however, with use dropping to just 14%.

8. LinkedIn

4,500,000 active monthly users

Dropping down the ranks, but still gaining users, the “Facebook for professionals” is notably more popular with men than women (28% vs 17%). LinkedIn reports that approximately 8 million Australians have signed up for LinkedIn accounts, which means that just over half log in to their account regularly.

Naturally, LinkedIn is widely used by businesses. It’s the second most popular social media site after Facebook for large businesses (used by 73% that use social media) and medium businesses (48%). It’s less popular with small businesses though, which are more likely to use Instagram.

9. Tumblr

3,700,000 monthly users

The only site on this list to lose rather than gain users over the past year (though only by around 100,000), Tumblr’s slow decline continues. However, the microblogging site retains a loyal user base.

10. Tinder

3,000,000 users

Just holding on to 10th place, Australia’s most popular dating app has an estimated 3 million users. This has remained stable over the past year, after increasing in 2017 when premium paid services were introduced.

Hot on Tinder’s heels in 11th place is WeChat with around 2,900,000 active monthly users. Hugely popular with Australia’s Chinese community, WeChat and other Chinese social networks such as RenRen and Weibo are expected to increasingly challenge traditional social networks in the coming years.

For more industry news and online marketing tips for your business, follow the Civic Web Media Blog.

This overview provides a glimpse into the different uses a hashtag can have and gives some tips on how to hashtag like a professional.

What is a hashtag?

A hashtag is a hash symbol (#) followed by a word or phrase made up of alphanumeric characters such as #hashtag or #contentmarketingaustralia. These metadata tags are used on social media platforms to group together posts on particular topics, and to allow users to search for information.

In some parts of the world, the # is known as the ‘pound sign’ or an ‘octothorpe’.

Read more: Intro to hashtags

Why hashtags are great for business

Hashtags are a powerful social media marketing tool. They allow brands to reach a wider and more targeted audience and to drive customer engagement. Companies can promote brand awareness through online interactions and communities using simple hashtag marketing strategies.

Read more: Hashtag tips for businesses

Best practice for hashtags

Like any form of communication there are rules and guidelines which govern best hashtag practice. Some are technical, like not including non-alphanumeric symbols in your hashtags (things like -, !, ?). Others improve readability and flow, like #not #putting #too #many #hashtags #midsentence, while others still will mark you out as a pro or a rookie.

Read more: Hashtag best practice

Hashtags for different platforms

Hashtags may have started out on Twitter, but they are now used across most popular social media sites including Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. While general best practices apply universally, there are a few important tips and tricks to know for tailoring your hashtags to the platform you’re using.

Read more: Hashtag tips for Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn

How do you choose the best hashtags?

There is no real magic formula for picking the best hashtags, but there are several useful tools and techniques for choosing which ones to attach to your posts.

Read more: How to choose hashtags

Branded, trending and recurring hashtags

Branded hashtags are used by brands to endorse or promote things like product launches, campaigns and conferences.

Trending hashtags are hashtags that are popular at a given time. These can be found within the social media platform you’re using – for instance Twitter and Facebook have trending topic sections – or via trending hashtag sites like trendsmap and hashtagifyme.

Recurring hashtags are, as the name suggests, hashtags that get used repeatedly. Things like #throwbackthursday, #motivationmonday and #2bittues.

Read more: Hashtag groups and how to use them

How not to hashtag

Hashtags allow you to reach a wide audience and join in conversations with potentially thousands of other social media users. The downside? This means any gaffs or embarrassments in your hashtag game will be available for the world to see – or, equally discouragingly, for no one to see. Don’t underestimate the importance of knowing what not to do when it comes to hashtagging.

Read more: Hashtag mistakes to avoid

It doesn’t take much effort to go from a hashtag novice to a confident, savvy hashtagger. Knowledge is power, so arm yourself with some hashtag know-how and before long you’ll be tagging with the best of them.

You may have a love-hate relationship with your own social networks, but Australians are still addicted to social media in growing numbers.

2017 was a landmark year for all the major platforms, with some getting a surprise boost in popularity and others failing to keep up with changing tastes. Find out which sites you should be prioritising in your social media marketing campaigns as we catch up with Australia’s favourite social networks in 2018.

How many Aussies are on social media?

According to the latest Sensis Social Media Report, 79% of Australians now use social media – up a full 10 points from 69% in 2016. Broken down be age group, this includes:

• 99% of adults aged 18-29
• 96% of adults in their 30s
• 86% of adults in their 40s

The average Australian owns three internet-enabled devices, though 81% prefer to access social media on their smartphones. 84% of people say they use the internet every day.

Pertinently for businesses, 64% of users say they trust brands that engage with their customers on social media (up from 52% last year). People are turned off by brands that have irrelevant or unappealing content, or that bombard their followers with too many ads.

Top 10 social networks in Australia

Statistics compiled by SocialMediaNews.com.au for December 2017. Stats and research provided by the Vivid Social – Social Media Agency. Figures correct as of 31/12/17.

1. Facebook

15,000,000 unique monthly visitors

Falling from 17 million users in the middle of last year, Facebook is still far and away the most popular social network in Australia. 60% of the population has a Facebook account and half of Australians check the site every day.

According to Sensis, 95% of Australians who use social media sites have an active account on Facebook (97% female vs. 91% male). It’s also used by 90% of businesses. If you only manage one social profile for your brand, it should be on Facebook.

See our social media comparison to find out what local Newcastle banks are doing right and wrong on Facebook.

2. YouTube

15,000,000 monthly visitors

While they might not check it quite so obsessively as Facebook, YouTube now gets as many unique visits a month, with around 15 million Australians watching at least one video on the site (over half the population).

Videos are one of the most engaging types of content, holding the audience’s attention for longer than text or images. However, only 11% of SMBs and 17% of large businesses have a presence on YouTube.

See how CSR uses YouTube videos as part of their content marketing activities.

3. Instagram

9,000,000 monthly active visitors

Australia’s favourite image-sharing site is also its fastest growing social network, almost doubling its user base from this time last year. Its popularity with adults is roughly inverse to age, with around 70% of under-30s having an account.

Curiously, Instagram is almost twice as popular with medium-sized organisations (39%) as small (19%) or large (20%) businesses.

If you’re on Instagram or you need to source images for your business blog, read our guide to how to use images legally.

4. WordPress.com

5,700,000 monthly visitors

Australia’s favourite CMS platform continues to grow in popularity with businesses and civilian bloggers alike. Its ease of use, extensive customisation and the fact that it can host your business website for free are all points in its favour.

Find out how to get started with a WordPress blog.

5. WhatsApp

5,000,000 active users

Another grower that gained almost two million users through 2017, this versatile instant messenger service is used by over a billion people worldwide.

Facebook bought WhatsApp for a record $22 billion in 2014, but more people still use the company’s own Facebook Messenger (81% to 18%).

6. LinkedIn

4,200,000 monthly visitors

The Facebook for professionals, LinkedIn is most popular with men (22% vs. 14% of women), the 50-64 age bracket (25%) and Queenslanders (22%), make of that what you will.

82% of large firms are active on LinkedIn, which falls to 41% of medium and 35% of small companies. It’s still the second most popular social media site for businesses of all sizes after Facebook.

Read more about how Australian brands use social media.

7. Snapchat

4,000,000 daily visitors

The social success story of 2016, Snapchat’s Australian user base has remained stable over the past year, but it’s still noteworthy that four million people use the app every day (one in six people).

The ephemeral image and video sharing app appeals mostly to young people under 30 (77% of users), who use it to share visual content that disintegrates shortly after viewing.

8. Tumblr

3,800,000 monthly visitors

Tumblr is still popular with many younger Aussies, but the micro-blogging site continues to fall down the ranks and lose relevance. With many users jumping ship in 2015, today it’s only visited by 11% of internet users.

Many of the most popular Tumblrs revolve around comics, reaction gifs and film quotes, but some game creators, TV stations and newspapers have had success there too.

9. Twitter

3,000,000 monthly active users

Twitter continues to be less popular locally than globally, even following a revamp that saw tweet lengths double and a greater emphasis on visual content. The majority of Twitter users are in the 18-29 age group (70%).

Formerly the social platform with the highest drop-off rate, it seems most dissatisfied users left in 2016 as Facebook has now taken pride of place with a 15% decline since last year (Twitter at 11%).

Read our hashtag hacks for Twitter and other platforms.

10. Tinder

3,000,000 monthly visitors

Australia’s top dating app has grown by around a million users over the past year, which was also the year it introduced its premium paid services for more discerning singles.

Tinder’s ruthless swipe function inspired LinkedIn to create a similar app for professional networking, but Tinder itself isn’t a network that lends itself to business use.

Find out how to look after your customers on social media.

This brief overview of #hashtags will shed some light on the little symbol that has had a big impact on the way we communicate.

What is a hashtag anyway?

A hashtag is used in social media to allow users to easily find posts related to a specific topic, tag their own posts or communicate with other users.

Put simply, hashtags help you search for content, and help others find your online content too.

#funfact: In 2014, the word “hashtag” was officially added to the Oxford English Dictionary, although you may want to think twice before using it in a game of Scrabble with Grandma.

What are hashtags used for?

Hashtags are used across most popular social media platforms, including Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Tumblr and Google+. On these platforms, hashtags enable you to:

Search: Hashtags allow you to search for topics and find all related posts about them. For instance, searching #GOTfinale on Twitter will return a list of posts about the final episode of Game of Thrones. Or, if you want to see multitudes of adorable puppies on Instagram, you could search the hashtag #puppiesofinstagram.

Tag: Hashtags make it easier for other social media users to search for and view your posts. For instance, if you’re an artist posting your work on Instagram you might add the hashtags #art #artist #creativity #penandink #landscape #originalartwork and so on.

Participate: Hashtags allow you to join in campaigns, make yourself heard or create a sense of community. Hashtags can be used to run competitions, update people on what’s happening at a festival or seminar, or to keep track of the developments in a news story. They can also be used in serious campaigns like the #illridewithyou campaign which emerged following the Lindt Café siege.

Add commentary/humour: Hashtags can be used to illustrate a point or add humour or context to a post such as: “Tried making soufflé for the first time today #itdidnotgowell #womp #thinkilljuststicktobeansontoast”.

How to hashtag effectively

A hashtag can be anything you want it to be. It simply needs to begin with a # symbol, followed by alphanumeric characters and, very importantly, no spaces. For example, #hashtagsareawesome2017, not #hashtags are awesome 2017.

Exclamation marks, question marks, apostrophes, commas and full stops are all to be avoided.

Hashtags are not case sensitive, so #newcastlensw and #NewcastleNSW will yield the same results.

Hashtags can be placed at the beginning, middle or end of a post. For example:

#adeleconcert Can’t believe I’m finally seeing Adele!

or

Can’t wait to see Adele tonight! #adeleconcert

or

On my way to the #adeleconcert in Newcastle, so excited!

The important thing to remember about hashtags is that they are for everyone. Whatever industry you’re in or whatever you’re posting about, they can help you get noticed, share your opinions to a wider audience and even grow your business.

If you’re struggling to make social media work for your business, check out how Australian brands made the best use of their social profiles in July 2016.

What social media sites do Australians use?

For your marketing efforts to be successful, you need to go where the people are. Researching Australia’s most popular social media sites will make it clear that a Facebook presence is essential, and a YouTube channel is just as important if you produce video content.

According to the latest data from StatCounter, more than 15 million Australians have Facebook accounts (62.5% of the population), while YouTube receives more than 14,400,000 unique Australian visitors every month.

Other social networks are also important, depending on your industry and the type of content you are producing. If you primarily market to business customers (B2B), a LinkedIn profile is essential for networking with the site’s 3,450,000 other Australian users (not to mention international users), while Instagram (5,000,000 users) and Pinterest (290,000 users) are useful platforms for sharing infographics and other images.

Twitter shouldn’t be neglected either, despite its comparatively smaller share of 2,800,000 users, as the microblogging site can be a powerful targeted marketing tool.

Most popular brands on social media

The Socialbakers July 2016 Social Marketing Report Australia reveals that Australian brands and customers are much more active on Facebook than on other social networks.

The top 20 brands made 312,994 interactions with Facebook users, compared to just 6,185 interactions on Twitter. The response rate was also higher for Facebook enquiries at 73%, compared to 42% of Twitter responses.

The most ‘liked’ brand on Facebook is McDonald’s, which has 1,229,969 likes as of the end of July 2016. This puts it ahead of other popular brands such as Lorna Jane, Garage Ink Tattoo and Samsung Australia, all of which have more than 1,000,000 likes. The most popular industry overall is e-commerce with 27,251,011 total fans, followed by retail with 23,047,732 likes.

Over on Twitter, Aussie airline Qantas has carved a niche for itself as the most liked brand month-to-month. YouTubers have consumed more videos from Telstra than any other brand (28,417,906 views), but MassiveJoes.com has the most subscribers at 103,953, showing more long-term engagement.

Most interactive brands

Images: Socialbakers

Collecting ‘likes’ is one thing, but companies that take the time to respond to their customers’ questions and comments can develop trusting relationships.

Online fashion store SHOWPO excels at customer interaction on Facebook, with a total 954,616 interactions earning the retailer a consistent lead since December 2015.

On Twitter, Sportsbet.com.au has become the most responsive brand with 36,362 interactions, while YouTube’s most interactive brands include Virgin Australia, ahm health insurance and Pedigree.

Even companies that have a smaller social presence can still build a reputation for caring for their customers. Kraft Nuts Australia & NZ interacted 445 times per 1,000 Facebook fans in July, following other brands such as Duracell, IXL Jam, Golden Circle in previous months.

The bar is set significantly lower on Twitter, with KFC being Australia’s most interactive brand despite interacting only 44 times per 1,000 followers.

Most socially devoted brands

Other brands impress with their dedication to answering as many questions as possible in the fastest possible time.

Telstra was the most socially devoted brand on Facebook in July (overtaking Woolworths in June), responding to 95.15% of enquiries in an average time of 213 minutes (3 hours and 33 minutes).

Australia Post was the most devoted on Twitter, again with slightly less impressive statistics of a 74.20% response rate and a 427-minute wait (7 hours and 7 minutes).

A socially devoted brand is defined as one that responds to at least 65% of its customers’ questions per quarter.

What were the most popular posts in July 2016?

The majority of social media posts are visual in nature, as brands aim to capture users’ attention with images and videos. Last month, 44% of Facebook posts were photos, 37% were videos and 18% were text links.

Facebook: Woolworths

Woolworths inspired the greatest reaction on Facebook in July by tapping into the cultural zeitgeist with a timely post related to Pokémon Go.

This post offered helpful advice to gamers about where to find some of those elusive Pokémon, while also weaving in references to fresh fruit and vegetables. Best of all, there was a creative image to go with it.

By the end of July, the post had provoked 70,878 total interactions, including 40,021 likes, 22,953 comments and 7,904 shares.

Twitter: KFC

KFC Australia also took note of current events by spotting that it was the birthday of 5 Seconds of Summer drummer/singer Ashton Irwin. The fast food giant sent Ashton a short video of birthday wishes that didn’t fail to promote KFC products in a big way.

30,276 Twitter users interacted with this post, including 18,441 likes, 11,185 retweets and 650 replies.

YouTube: Optus

Optus also went down the music route by offering fans of singer-songwriter Troye Sivan an exclusive soundcheck performance of his new single ‘Talk Me Down.’

Between its posting on 11 July and the end of the month, this video was watched 9,492 times, attracting 1,027 likes and 169 comments.

What can we learn from this?

It’s clear that Australia’s biggest brands devote more time and attention to Facebook than other social platforms, but there are still plenty of opportunities for smaller businesses to make a name for themselves as companies that genuinely care about their customers.

While the lower barriers to Twitter prominence also offer opportunities there, the comparatively small number of Australians who actually use that site means that Twitter probably shouldn’t be the main focus for your social media marketing.

With home-grown brands like SHOWPO and Lorna Jane holding their own against the multinationals, social media is revealed to be a democracy where the customer experience truly counts, not just big bucks. If you can regularly provide engaging and timely content to your followers, and your staff are committed to responding to enquiries as often and as quickly as possible, your business can look forward to achieving social media success.

While some of these sites release figures for each country, others don’t so we’ve used Social Media News’ clever formula for working out Aussie numbers.

Facebook is the most well known social media site and it’s no surprise that it comes out on top. Of its almost 1.5 billion members, around 14m of them are Australians — almost two thirds of the entire population. According to data from Sensis, 93% of Australians who use social media sites have an active account on Facebook.

Not far behind Facebook is YouTube, which has more than 13m Australians watching at least one video on the site every month. Even on other sites like Facebook, videos are one of the most engaging types of content and hold someone’s attention for a long time.

Bought by Facebook for $1b in April 2012, Instagram is continuing to grow in popularity. Around 5 million Aussies are signed up to the image-sharing site, up from just over 2 million at this time last year.

Tumblr’s inclusion in the top four may come as a bit of a shock, but recent figures show that around 4.3m Australians have signed up for the micro-blogging site. Many of the most popular Tumblrs revolve around comics, reaction gifs and film quotes, but some game creators, TV stations and newspapers have had success there, too.

With around 3.6m Australian sign-ups, LinkedIn — often described as a Facebook for professionals — rounds off the top five, despite losing around 300,000 members in the past year. Of those who use social media sites, 28% of Australians have a LinkedIn profile where they can keep in touch with former colleagues, build business networks and share industry updates.

The most surprising omissions from this list are Twitter (which has an estimated 2.8m Aussie accounts but hasn’t seen any growth in the past 12 months) and Pinterest (which only has 320,000 Australian accounts, down about 70,000 on its 2014 figures), but this doesn’t mean that you should write them off. With the right social media strategy it’s possible to make the most of any online community.

Image: “Social Media apps” by Jason Howie is licensed under CC BY 2.0