Social media has become a standard channel of communication for consumers. In the past few years, it has gained significant growth as a legit media outlet and has begun to eclipse some out-of-date outlets like TV as a more desirable channel for getting media content into viewer’s consciousness. Here, I am going to dive into some insane social media facts that you might want to know about.
#1 If Twitter were a country, it’d be the 12th largest in the world
Yes indeed, if internet space was real space, the home of all of our tweets would be right above the Philippines and right below Mexico on the list of most populous countries. Still, that’s only a little more than 1% of the world population…when do you think it’ll take the top spot from China?
#2 Nearly 12 years worth of YouTube footage is uploaded every day
According to the latest statistics on the YouTube website, there’s probably more time in footage on the site than the amount of time modern man has existed. Think about that one for a second. Even if you spent your whole life watching YouTube videos, you wouldn’t even be scratching the surface of everything that’s been uploaded.
#3 More than 350 million Facebook users suffer from “Facebook Addiction Disorder”
Yes, this is a real thing. Symptoms include: Substituting real dates for virtual dates (“Meet me online at 7 so we can chat”), reduction of normal social activities (“Don’t call me, just send me a message”), withdrawal symptoms (“Do you have a smartphone? I need to post this!”) and others. Do you have FAD?
#4 There are twice as many smartphone users as cigarette smokers in the U.K
Are people becoming more connected? Are people choosing to quit these days? Is it both? Hard to say, but at any rate, we think this is a pretty cool stat.
#5 30% of Twitter users have an income of more than $100,000
Considering that the national median income across all Americans is $45,000-$50,000, this should say something about the kinds of users who feel the need to give constant updates about themselves. Celebrities, executives, and companies dominate Twitter.
#6 LinkedIn gets two new members every second
With a crazy enrollment rate like that, it’s no wonder that the new face of job hunting has seen their revenue double in every quarter for the last two years. You can stop looking at classified ads, now!
#7 1 in 5 couples overall and 3 in 5 gay couples meet online
Social media seems to be changing everything about our lives, doesn’t it? Dating sites have been around for a little while already, but their influence gets bigger by the minute to enhance our dating pools. If you want a shot at someone different, all you need is an OKCupid account now!
#8 Over 5 million pictures are uploaded to Instagram every day
To give you a clue of what this means, it’s as if nearly the entire population of Singapore, or the entire country of Norway, were to upload a photo every day. Given that Instagram is on the upswing and shows no sign of going way, expect this number to go way up!
#9 97% of the fans of Pinterest’s Facebook page are women
Just another reminder of the differences between men and women. Could it be that Pinterest is just too ‘cute’ for guys? In any case, we love the site for everything that it is- maybe some day it’ll even bridge the gender gap!
#10 YouTube originally started out as a dating site, influenced by HotOrNot.com
Hate on sites like eHarmony and OKCupid as much as you want, but without their kind we wouldn’t have Gangnam Style, Charlie Bit My Finger, or any of a number of cultural phenomena. Goes to show that you never know where the next great idea will come from!
#11 3 million new blogs come online every month
Everyone has a story to tell these days, apparently. If you haven’t already, go sign up with Tumblr or WordPress or something and get on the Blogosphere! You could be the next Perez Hilton….but probably not.
