Do retailers need more social media?

Social media is big part of people’s everyday lives in the U.S., with 86 percent using it daily and 72 percent using it multiple times over the course of a typical day, according to a recent survey of 627 social media users.

The research from The Manifest, a business news and how-to site, found that people, in general, are using social media more today than they did in 2017. Women are more active users of social media, with 75 percent using it several times a day, compared to 64 percent of men.

“It’s how people communicate, look for events, notice stores and brands, and find the weather. It’s how people are aided in their daily life,” Josh Loewen, digital marketing director of The Status Bureau, a digital marketing agency, told the site.

Facebook remains the social site used by most people. Eighty-two percent access Facebook at least once per week, followed by YouTube (75 percent) and Instagram (53 percent).

“[Facebook] has been defaulted to people’s home on the internet; it’s the other internet,” Mr. Loewen told The Manifest. “When people think of where to go and what media to consume, they go to Facebook. It’s like when you’re bored, you turn on the TV. Regardless of whether the channels on TV are bad or not, you’re going to turn on the TV. People are going to use Facebook.”

Retailers and brands have long struggled to figure out how to use social media to drive customer engagement and sales.

Earlier this year, Jamie Salvatori, founder of Vat19, an online store selling irreverent gifts that is known for its YouTube videos, told an audience at the Internet Retailer Conference and Exposition that driving sales via social channels requires a big commitment in human and financial resources.

“The promise of social media was, ‘I make all this content and I can put it up there and I can build this audience, I’m going to build my brand, I’m going to build my sales …’ I’ve been making these videos for 12 years. It doesn’t work that way in my experience too much,” Mr. Salvatori said.

• How People Use Social Media in 2018 – The Manifest
• YouTube and Instagram Gaining Ground Among Social Media Users, According to New Survey From The Manifest – The Manifest/PRNewswire
• Retailers told to forget social media – RetailWire