Tim Peterson (@petersontee) of MarketingLand.com did a great job of analyzing a moving target in sizing up “How Facebook’s, Instagram’s and Snapchat’s audience size estimates compare.”
Now, I realize that many believe that Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat have little or no value to law firms. I beg to differ. Think of social media as being just another method to deliver marketing and promotion, public relations and brand management—just like TV, radio or publications.
Think of it this way: in the evening, when people are relaxing and multiscreening at home, they are skimming through Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. While checking out @beyonce, @therock or @lin_manuel_, inspiring, artful or humorous law firm content injected into these networks can bring positive attention, higher engagement and broader brand awareness.
Peterson’s charts show that Facebook and Instagram, which is owned by Facebook, dominate in the seven largest countries by media spend.
In the US alone, that is an estimated 200M Facebook users, 100M Instagram users and over 75M Snapchat users. And if they are anything like me, they are skipping between all of these channels throughout the evening.
By the numbers, Instagram stories—different from Instagram posts—are reaching far more people than Snapchat (this is interesting because many deemed Instagram stories to be a rip-off of Snapchat’s format). Furthermore, Instragram is more popular than Snapchat in all countries except France.
And possibly the most interesting chart to law firm marketers is Peterson’s stats on those aged 35+. In their mid-career, these people were the first generation to have used Facebook all of their adult life—it is now a habit for them. Facebook was founded in 2004. This means that 35-year olds are the first generation to have used Facebook all of their adult life—it is a part of their everyday life. That means that the majority of folks below the age of 35 are more than likely have a Facebook account, and probably have an Instagram account. These numbers likely include your in-house counsel.
Looking at the chart, these mid-career adults, are using Facebook more than Instagram or Snapchat in every major country. According to the data, based upon recent usage, nearly 150 million adults are looking at content on either their Facebook or Instagram accounts.
Perhaps it is time to reassess you opinion of Facebook and Instagram.