Another survey showing emerging markets lead in social media use

Apr 2, 2012 by Dirk Singer

Over the past few years there have been a range of studies showing that once they are online, citizens of countries such as Indonesia, Argentina, Russia, Brazil and the Philippines are more likely than their Western counter-parts to be active in social media.

For example:

The countries with the highest Facebook penetration as a % of the Internet population are The Philippines, Israel, Turkey, Chile and Argentina

The most active Instagram fans (members of the IGers groups of super-users) are in the Philippines, Brazil and Turkey

Who spends the most time on social media? Once again, it is users in Israel, Russia, Argentina, The Philippines and Turkey

And though the Netherlands and Japan lead in Twitter use; Indonesia, Venezuela, Argentina, Turkey and The Philippines are also in the top ten list

The latest Ipsos / Reuters study very much chimes in with these findings. It tells us that an average of 62% of people in the 24 countries surveyed (a mix of G20 and others like Saudi Arabia) that use the Internet also use social media, with Indonesia (83%), Argentina (76%), Russia (75%), Sweden (72%) and South Africa (73%) leading the way.

Both the UK (65%) and US (61%) are mid table, ahead of France (50%), which is near the bottom of the list.

What is the take-out for brands?

First of all, when doing business in emerging markets, social media should be on the agenda. Yes, proportionally the Internet population is smaller, but these are also likely to be the consumers with some degree of spending power.

Secondly, the stats about the time spent on social channels suggests that social media users in emerging markets are more likely to have an active, as opposed to a passive role

And, related to that, they are also likely to represent users with a reasonable English language proficiency and a willingness to explore sites internationally. Hence ‘influencers’ from these territories may also be making an appearance on your blog or Facebook page in the US or UK, especially if a global brand is involved.

(Image – Indonesia, the country with the highest social media penetration as a % of the Internet population. Via Rulhaf)