The 6 top social media sites in 2022

1. Instagram

Instagram has well over 1 billion monthly users and has long been the home of influencers, companies, bloggers, small business owners, friends, and everyone in between. If you're asking whether a significant portion of your audience uses the platform, the answer is almost certainly yes.

Instagram has grown in popularity among teenagers and young adults, particularly in the United States. Instagram usage declines with age but remains steady among men and women, so if your clients are under 40, you can't afford to ignore it.

On Instagram, beautiful photography, stunning visuals, unique designs, a selfie-style video that speaks directly to your audience, and a consistent theme will help you stand out.

2. Facebook

Facebook is the world's most popular social media platform, with about 2.5 billion monthly users. While that nearly guaranteed at least some of your audience routinely uses the platform, it’s gained a fairly poor reputation amongst younger users that are increasingly turning to other alternative sites.

Consider having a presence on Facebook if your company stands to gain from sharing industry-related news, engaging (short-form) videos, graphics, and other aesthetically appealing content—especially if your major audience is over the age of 30. You may also use Facebook groups to bring your clients or community together in one place online. Unlike Facebook company pages, Facebook groups aren't for advertising, although they can be useful for generating conversation.

3. Twitter

While Twitter's monthly active user statistics have been stable at approximately 300 million for some time, a whopping 40% of those users log in many times each day, implying that if your audience utilizes the network, they're likely quite engaged. This social networking site continues to be popular among tech-savvy users, and it is especially active in B2-B sectors such as business, marketing, and politics today.

Twitter has grown in popularity as a platform for communicating breaking news, digesting bite-sized content, and communicating directly with your users in real-time. Videos and images tend to stand out the most, but if you're hopping on trending topics and are particularly witty, a well-timed written tweet can still work wonders.

4. Pinterest

Pinterest has grown in popularity as a social bookmarking tool for saving ideas and finding creative inspiration in a variety of fields, including cooking, DIY home projects, vacation ideas, interior design, business, and everything in between. With a predominantly female audience, this social media platform is frequently cited as an important part of the product discovery journey.

Vertically formatted images perform best on this platform, owing largely to the browsing experience provided to users. The best performing imagery is polished imagery with clear copy that conveys what the Pinner will see if they click through. Numbers, lists, and quotes should all play a role in your strategy here. Remember to include keywords and search terms in your imagery.

5. Youtube

YouTube is the world's second most popular search engine, trailing only its parent company, Google. If your company could benefit from creating video tutorials or walkthroughs, visually-driven instructional content, product reviews, or interviews, then this social media platform is a must for reaching over 2 billion monthly users. Only video is available. Long-form and short-form video content can both work well on this platform, depending on your type of business and your target audience. Most viewers tune in for a mix of education and entertainment, so whether you're teaching your audience about new marketing strategies or streaming video gameplay, work hard to keep their attention throughout your videos. You should also consider taking advantage of popular YouTube trends such as unboxing videos (especially if you are promoting a physical product) and "with me" content that takes viewers along for the ride. Furthermore, if starting a YouTube channel seems daunting, collaborating with YouTube influencers who are enthusiastic about your mission could help you test the waters before diving in.

6. Snapchat

Despite appearing to be losing ground to competitor social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok, Snapchat remains one of the most popular apps among people under the age of 25, with over 300 million monthly users in recent months. The majority of Snapchat users use the app to share updates and communicate with friends and family via disappearing images and short video messages.

Storytelling through video. If you have a talent for making compelling (usually selfie-style) short videos that can entertain and educate a young audience, Snapchat is an obvious platform for you to connect with your customers.

You want to reach a young audience and enjoy creating bite-sized, engaging video content. However, unlike TikTok, don't expect to turn on your camera and talk about your products all day, as the majority of Snapchat users are here to be entertained.