This social media snapshot, compiled by World Wide Worx and Fuseware in 2015, came to our attention recently. Here it is below, with some thoughts on the numbers:
- Facebook started as a desktop-based website, but mobile users by far dominate these days. Facebook has made big strides in “pivoting” its strategy towards mobile over the years, and it seems to have paid off. The 50/50 balance between male and female users is also impressive
- For a country with some of the highest mobile data costs in the world, it’s impressive to see YouTube way up there. People are actively seeking out video content, and will spend their airtime to find it
- Twitter is still growing in South Africa, with many just not “getting” what Twitter is about. But it’s always been mobile-first in its approach, hence the 85% mobile user figure
- Mxit is on the wane. It led the pack years ago, before there was a proliferation of messaging services, but now it’s losing out to the likes of Facebook Messenger, and particularly WhatsApp (which is sadly absent from this infographic)
- LinkedIn will always be linked to the sensitive topic of jobs in South Africa. It is mainly a business and professional networking platform, and as more young people reach job-seeking age, LinkedIn’s importance will also likely grow
- Instagram started from a low base, but has seen very impressive growth. It will always be more appealing for high-end users with decent data bundles and quality cameras on their smartphones, but again, this market is on the rise
- Pinterest has always been desktop-focused, and with its niche appeal, will probably not see huge growth here
- Google+ has very cleverly reported high numbers of users, but anyone with a Gmail account was basically given a G+ account. The platform has seen varied success, but on the whole, it never really took off in the same way the other major players did. Small communities and industries will continue to use it, and its functionality continues to get broken off into more useful, standalone apps
“We’re seeing the beginning of the visual revolution in online usage in South Africa,” says Arthur Goldstuck of World Wide Worx. “The global rise of video is now making itself felt here. Once the cost of mobile data comes down for the emerging smartphone market, video will become a dominant medium, strongly supported by other visual media.”
As smartphone and data costs fall, these numbers will continue to rise. As mentioned above, we should also be keeping a keen eye on the likes of WhatsApp, as well as Snapchat, as growing social platforms in South Africa.
And don’t forget, if you or your company are keen on introductory crash courses on any of the above, get in touch with Flow Communications today, and we’ll be happy to assist you.
