What’s Trending: Multi-Socialing

By now you’ve probably noticed that if someone’s on Facebook, chances are they also have a Twitter handle – and most likely an Instagram account, too. Everyone’s multi-socialing, AKA the trend that describes the growing popularity for online adults to be active on two or more social media sites, rather than only one. While Facebook remains the most popular social media site, 2014 was the first year that it saw little increase in membership; instead, social media sites like Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Linkedin had significant increases in usership in 2014, and they continue to grow.

Who cares?

If you’re reading this right now, there’s a 52% chance you’re a multi-socialer. Not only are more and more online adults expanding their social media usage in general, but there’s also the new reality that Facebook is no longer the sole source for social networking – even though it’s still the big fish.

We are on-the-go, highly visual people, so the short blurbs we get on Twitter and the engaging images on Instagram and Pinterest are becoming more and more enticing, leading us to stray from the often drawn-out information we get from Facebook.

Don’t believe it?

Statistics from Pew Research Center’s latest study published January 9, 2015 prove the reality of this trend. 52% of online adults now use two or more social media sites, an increase from 42% in 2013. For the first time, over half of all online adults 65+ (56%) use Facebook. Also a first: roughly half of all online young adults ages 18-29 (53%) use Instagram. 23% of online adults use Twitter, up from 18% in 2013. Finally, 42% of online women use Pinterest, compared with 13% of online men.

Today, we receive five times as much information as we did thirty years ago, and visualized information has increased 9900% on the Internet since 2007. We have always been visually wired; yet, the Internet is just now answering our craving for images. With more visually oriented sites to visit, we are beginning to stray from the more text-heavy options. Facebook, that means you.

Brands: Get on this

Before spending your entire marketing budget on pay monthly websites without thinking about social media, take a minute to reevaluate. Consider these ideas:

  • It may seem obvious, but brands should spend more money on social media marketing and advertising – it’s the first step in creating a recognizable social media presence across all relevant platforms.
  • Brands need to get creative with images and graphics on other forms of social besides Facebook, since Facebook is extra-light on the design end.
  • Consider, for example, the fact that 21% of Pinterest users have purchased an item after seeing it on a brand’s Pinterest board.

Yet, while it’s important to increase social media presence, be careful to maintain brand consistency to keep the growing population of multi-socialers engaged and loyal.