Social Media User Behavior in Spain During 2018

Global Social Media Usage Statistics 2018

The statistics are overwhelming. The planet is home to over 7.5 billion people, of whom 4 billion have access to the internet — that’s 53% of the global population. Three-quarters of internet users are active on social media, which means 3.2 billion users or 42% of the global population (13% more than last year). In 2018, Facebook reached 2 billion users worldwide.

 

Social Media Usage Statistics 2018 in Spain

According to the study conducted by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB Spain), the association that represents the digital advertising and communication sector in Spain, more than half of the Spanish population (25.5 million people, 85% of internet users) use Social Media. Facebook and WhatsApp remain the leading social networks, although, unlike in 2017, Facebook has lost ground among users (-4%) while Instagram has seen the biggest growth (+4%) in user numbers, becoming the third most visited social network. Snapchat is the fastest-growing network with a +5% increase in users.

WhatsApp ranks as the most valued network among its users, followed by YouTube, Instagram, and Spotify. The networks that lost the most user favor are Facebook, Twitter, and Spotify.

Women and younger people (ages 16 to 30) are the ones who spend the most time on social media. Regarding daily usage, WhatsApp and Spotify lead in frequency, followed by YouTube. The average daily time spent on social media is 58 minutes.

Regarding the most common uses of social media, the sending of public or private messages ranks first (66%), watching videos and listening to music comes second (56%), checking what contacts are doing third (36%), and gaining knowledge fourth (36%).

The peak social media activity occurs between 8:30 PM and 12:30 AM (74%). Activity gradually increases throughout the day, with early morning being the least favored time for social media use.

Compared to 2017, mobile phones have become the primary device used to access social media, overtaking computers (the most used device in 2017). Tablet usage is declining.

As for generational use, Generation Z (ages 16 to 23) uses a larger number of social networks simultaneously, with a stronger presence on Instagram, Snapchat, Tumblr, 21Buttons, Twitch, and Musically, while the previous generation, Millennials (ages 24 to 38), use WhatsApp, Facebook, and LinkedIn more. YouTube is the most widely used network across both generations.

 

User Behavior Toward Brands on Social Media (2018)

27% of social media users say that brands with a social media profile inspire more trust, especially among those under 45, the main demographic of social media consumers. 69% say a brand’s presence or absence on social media does not affect their level of trust, while 4% say brand profiles on social media actually make them trust the brand less.

It is important to note that 57% of users search for product information on social media before making a purchase, making it essential for brands to be present and meet this demand. 38% of users leave comments, share opinions, or raise issues or questions about their purchases on social media platforms.

8 out of 10 users follow brands on social media (similar levels to 2017), and 39% of these users report doing so actively (a lot or quite a bit), up 16 percentage points from 2017.

7 out of 10 users follow influencers. They consider them credible and relatively non-promotional.

 

General Conclusions

• While in 2017 we observed a continuous increase in social media usage, in 2018 we can say growth is showing signs of stagnation. According to the latest Annual Social Media Study 2018 by IAB Spain, the number of social media users in Spain dropped by 1%.
• The most prominent social networks in Spain are WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
• Facebook is losing ground to Instagram, which continues to grow and still has room for further adoption (49%).
• Twitter has the highest user abandonment rate.

 

Source: iabspain.es