Social networks have become an essential part of our daily lives so much so that IDC Research says that 80% of smartphone users check their mobile devices before getting out of bed. So logging into social media apps is, in a way, our escape from reality. These platforms are a shoulder to lean on especially now when people are practicing social distancing.
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Out of different types of content on these networks, the one that rules them all (to misquote J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings) is video. Of course, this isn’t surprising. Videos have an emotional draw that makes them both compelling and personal. In fact, Facebook has revealed that over 100 million hours of video are watched on its platform every day.
The popularity of social media video platforms isn’t showing any signs of shrinking in 2021. So, social media marketers are scrambling to catch audiences’ attention in an increasingly video-dominated world. If you’re one of them, it’s helpful to know which networks are the most popular around the world. With this knowledge, you can raise your brand reach, engage with your target audience, and fulfill your marketing goals.
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But before we list those social video platforms that are the talk of the town, let’s see what you need to know about these networks!
Why Are Social Video Platforms Popular?
The popularity of social media isn’t puzzling at all. Namely, these apps provide an environment where people around the world can connect, share their thoughts, and interact with each other regardless of the miles that separate them. Thus, if you were to ask any user, they would probably single out the following three reasons that encourage them to log into social media:
- Meet new people: Do you remember the time when you would open your Facebook account and see a friend request from the person you didn’t even know? Ah, yes. Those were the good old days when we were mesmerized by the fact that we could connect with someone living on the other half of the globe. With 3.8 million active users, social networking provides us with a chance to meet new people and engage with them every day.
- Join groups that reflect our interest: Most popular social media networks have the option to create groups. These groups connect like-minded people and give them a platform where they can share their interests and hobbies. Here, we can post different video content or articles that have resonated with us to see what others think of them.
- Businesses reach out to their consumers: Another reason that can explain the success of social media is that they connect businesses with their potential customers. In fact, 72% of customers will watch video content to find out about your product or service. And if you give them what they want, then you can increase your brand awareness and generate leads. So, if you ask us, these platforms are the place to be if you want to grow your business — just start investing in video content marketing!
Now that we’ve mentioned why they’re popular, let’s also take a look at who’s using the top video social media sites today.
Who Is Using Social Video Platforms?
We can safely say that the world has never been more connected than it is today. In fact, almost two-thirds of the world’s population is smitten with the internet, with more than 4.4 billion using it across multiple devices. But how popular are social media video platforms among different generations? Let’s find out because this information can be useful for your marketing strategies.
Sometimes it’s helpful to see how various companies decided to attract their target audience to their brand. These global marketing strategies can give you some ideas on how to go about getting people interested in what you offer.
Baby Boomers
“OK, Boomer” is now a viral internet slang to dismiss narrow-minded perceptions commonly associated with the baby boomer generation. However, this cohort shouldn’t be discarded just yet.
True, most of our parents probably don’t understand our obsession with live streaming, but they’re increasingly joining major social media platforms. Although they didn’t grow up with technology we use today, they’re showing interest in social networks.
Namely, their usage of Instagram has increased by 59% since 2016. Also, unlike popular belief, baby boomers aren’t only active on Viber. Ever since 2016, 44% of boomers have joined WhatsApp.
So, take that, youth!
Generation X
Also dubbed the “MTV Generation,” Gen Xers were the last demographic cohort to grow up before the rise of the internet. Their early years were marked by new technologies, including wireless phones.
When it comes to this generation, they spend almost 2 hours on social media every day on average. Of course, they devote less time than millennials to these apps, but more than boomers. Nevertheless, it’s safe to say they love visiting social media video apps!
Millennials
Unlike the above two generations, millennials grew up with technology. They were the first demographic cohort to have been raised with computers and smartphones. Naturally, they witnessed the birth of social media, accepted, and helped it become what it is today.
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In fact, according to a recent research, screen time for millennials on social media amounts to 2 hours and 38 minutes every day. During this time, they’re not only watching YouTube videos or liking Instagram photos — they’re active users of more than one platform. In fact, an average millennial has over 9 social media accounts!
In most cases, Gen Yers, another name for this group, use social media to fill up their spare time. Therefore, it’s no wonder that some millennials don’t even post any photos or videos online.
Generation Z
Lastly, we’ll mention Generation Z whose members have never known a world devoid of the internet. Having access to the digital world ever since a young age, Gen Z feels comfortable online so much that they surpass millennials in daily activity on social media. Indeed, they spend 2 hours and 55 minutes scrolling through apps every day.
One notable characteristic of this group is that they aren’t huge fans of Facebook. Quite the contrary — they would definitely choose multimedia-heavy websites over it. For instance, to use their lingo, Instagram Stories are lit among Gen Z. Facts.
Okay, we’ll stop.
Now that we know why these networks are popular and who is using them, we can start looking at three social media video platforms that are taking the world by storm!
Top Social Video Sites in 2020
Here are the three best social media platforms for videos currently:
TikTok
TikTok has easily become the favorite social video platform of Generation Z. Indeed, when Andy Warhol said “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes,” he was referring to TikTok without even knowing it.
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This video-sharing app has a whopping 800 million active users around the world. They are all logging in to watch and share their own 15-second music videos. And it seems TikTok is everything people have been waiting for.
Namely, in 2019, it was the third most downloaded app globally. It’s so popular, in fact, that we can guarantee that, if you were to open your Instagram account, you’d see someone posting a TikTok video there. Talk about social media-ception! But, why is this one of the most popular video social media apps?
TikTok lets you choose from a wide range of songs and filters you can apply to your videos. You can even reply to someone else’s post, thus creating split-screen videos. Because of its short videos, TikTok has been compared to Vine (but we hope it won’t end like its predecessor).
Take a look at creative TikTok video ideas that will attract attention!
Instagram’s ability to constantly evolve and change has really paid off in the last couple of years. With over 1 billion active users, this social media app has proved that its game-changing updates are just what people need. From 60-second videos, to Instagram Stories, and all the way to live videos and IGTV, Instagram is a social media tour de force.
Due to its popularity, brands are increasingly joining Instagram in an attempt to attract more consumers. Their move isn’t surprising when you know that 200 million users visit at least one business profile a day on this app.
What’s more, Instagram has made it easier for companies to examine their reach. In other words, it provides you with rich analytics of your profile. This insight tells you how many people have seen or shared your posts with other users. This access to detailed analytics is what marketers love about video social media platforms!
Right now, the go-to feature of this platform are definitely Instagram stories with 500 million people using them every day.
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This app has over 320 million monthly users, with 71% of them being female. From the get-go, Pinterest became a safe haven for those who wanted to discover new things and get inspired. In that regard, it differs from other social media apps where engagement is the most important thing.
While people used to mostly pin photos, this has changed in recent years. Today, Pinterest video has become one of the best tools for discovering inspiring and valuable ideas. And this company is actively working on adding new features for video content.
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In fact, you can even use Pinterest to advertise your business and gain traction. To be specific, the company says that 78% of its users believe that branded content is useful on this platform. In keeping with the times, Pinterest launched a mobile video ad platform for veteran and aspiring publishers in 2016. Its Promoted Videos offers brands a one-of-a-kind chance to reach consumers through mobile video advertising!
Join Social Video Platforms Today!
To sum up, the above-mentioned statistics prove that social video platforms are both the present and the future of the internet. Apart from distracting us from everyday hardships, these apps provide a place where we can connect with people of our age and interests.
And what better way to reach all of them as a brand than by joining social video platforms today! So, get inspired and start creating video content that will compel consumers to repost, like, pin, or share it! Join the best social video platforms we mentioned in our article!
