More than 4 billion people worldwide use the Internet, according to a new report from social media management company Hootsuite and creative agency We are Social.
Of the 4 billion total, social media brings nearly 3.2 billion active users online to connect with each other, consume media, interact with brands and more, according to the report, Digital in 2018.
U.S. Social Media Users
In the past year, 16 million people started using social media platforms in the U.S, — an increase of 7%. Now, more than 70 percent of Americans use social media and spend two hours a day on social platforms. Overall, Americans spend 6.5 hours a day using the Internet, 60% more time than they spend watching television.
The report also found that global growth of the Internet is driving ecommerce, with just under 1.8 billion Internet users purchasing consumer goods online in 2017, an increase of 8% compared to a year ago. Collectively, consumers spent a total of nearly $1.5 trillion on ecommerce platforms in the past 12 months, 16% more than in 2016.
“To achieve competitive advantage, all executives must dive deep into digital now, meeting their customers where they are to best market, sell, and serve them,” said Penny Wilson, CMO of Hootsuite, in a prepared statement.
Among other report findings:
- Internet user numbers increased 7% in the last 12 months to hit 4.021 billion, or 53 percent of the world’s population
- Global social media usage has increased by 13% in the last 12 months, reaching 3.196 billion users
- Mobile social media usage has increased by 14% year over year to 2.958 billion users, with 93 percent of social media users accessing social from mobile
- Internet users are projected to spend a combined total of 1 billion years online in 2018, of which 325 million years will be spent on social media
“With 4 billion people now online, connectivity is already a way of life for most of us,” said Simon Kemp, global consultant for We Are Social, in a prepared statement. “However, as Internet companies strive to serve the next billion users, we’ll see important changes in digital over the coming months. Audio-visual content will take priority over text – especially in social media and messaging apps – while voice commands and cameras will replace keyboards as our primary means of input. Social relationships and online communities will evolve to accommodate these new ways for people to interact with each other. This will result in rich new experiences for all of us, but businesses need to start preparing for these changes today.”