Q3 2016
MEDIA Regional Insights & Benchmarks About Socialbakers
Socialbakers is the trusted social media analytics partner to thousands of enterprise brands and SMEs, including over 100 companies on the 2015 Fortune Global 500. Socialbakers’ solutions help companies of any size ensure their investment in social media is delivering measurable business outcomes and Turning Digital Relationships into Growth. With over 2,500 clients across 115 countries, Socialbakers is the industry leader in social media analytics, tracking over 8 million social profiles across all major social platforms including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Google+, and VK. Socialbakers has been a Facebook Preferred Marketing Developer since 2011.
About the Analysts
Michaela Branova
Michaela Branova is the Market Insights and Analytics Manager at Socialbakers. Her expertise is in looking for patterns and insights in social media data to uncover impactful conclusions for today’s social media marketers.
Phillip Ross
Phillip Ross is a Social Media Analyst at Socialbakers. He has written extensively about the intersection of marketing, social media, and data for the Socialbakers blog and in numerous white-papers. Phil is also passionate about politics, and has been quoted in the press about the impact of social media on democratic elections. This report looks at the Media industry on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. We identify the quarter- to-quarter changes in a number of key performance metrics between Q3 2016 and Q2 2016.
Our team of analysts have identified the three major changes that you need to keep an eye on for each region in Insights by Region, while the Benchmarks and Top Content chapters provide you with context for your social media performance, as well as inspiration for creating even better content from your industry’s top performers.
Social media is a constantly-evolving landscape.
You need the latest data to give context to your performance and plan for the future.
Contents
Insights by Region Facebook Benchmarks
North America Facebook Top Content
Latin America Twitter Benchmarks
Brazil Instagram Benchmarks
Europe, Middle East and Africa
Japan & Asia Pacific
Australia & New Zealand Executive Summary North America
Promoted Posts up nearly 50% from Q2, and gaining speed.
In North America, Media Pages promoted 49.4% more posts than they did in Q2 2016. For the year, social media marketers for Media Pages have promoted 26% more than they did in 2015. Unlike for other industries, this growth actually indicates a maturing market for Media. Though Media Pages historically promote very little content because the content cycle moves so quickly, increases in post promotion mean that marketers and publishers are becoming quicker to recognize which posts are their top performers, and could stay in the public discourse longer. If Media marketers are not yet publishing often and setting performance benchmarks for their content, they should be now that their competition is rapidly doing so. Media marketers should look to not only see how many interactions their posts get, but should see how extended each post’s accrual of these interactions is. The longer that post lives on in their audience’s News Feeds, the more likely they should promote it.
Facebook Videos experience 2.5% growth in engagement in Q3; and 63.8% growth from 2015.
While photo posts earned more engagement in Q3 than in Q2, only videos were more engaging in 2016 than in 2015 - and by a large margin. With 2.5% quarterly growth and 63.8% annual growth, videos are the clear future for Media marketers. Comparatively, photo posts are being interacted with 21% less often this year; links, 25% less often; and statuses, 51% less often. A major part of this shift has been because of the introduction and adoption of Facebook Live videos, which are perfect outlets for bringing reporting, event coverage, and interactive news desk shows to audiences’ News Feeds. We expect this trend to continue at a steadier pace in the near future as new media outlets and traditional broadcasters alike are recommended to integrate existing shows into social media platforms, and begin “socialcasting” new shows as well.
Interactions on Facebook grow slowly at 2.2% from Q2.
In Q3, Interactions on North American Media posts grew by only 2.2%, and were down by 11.3% from Q3 2015. This is not a dire issue, though: not only did Facebook’s algorithm shifts early in the quarter prioritize shared content, likely affecting some (but not all) Media content’s performance, the more likely source of the decline is actually tied to the rise of Facebook Live. For Facebook Live socialcasters, Interactions are not nearly as important a metric as Total Viewership and Peak Viewership. When these metrics become available, and as the format may shift to include other live streaming video innovations, Media marketers will be able to get a more accurate reading of their posts’ effectiveness. For now, we recommend that Media marketers publish Facebook Live videos and encourage their audiences to engage with them through trackable measures - either on the post, their Page, or their site. Executive Summary Latin America
Follower Growth on Twitter slows by 29% from Q2, 49% from Q3 2015.
Twitter growth slowed down more in LATAM than anywhere else in Q3. Down to 3.8% from Q2 2016’s 5.4%, it still represents a fast pace of growth, but as with any slow-growing platform, it means that marketers need to adapt their message for a more fluent audience.
LATAM Media Publishers Tweet More Than Twice As Often As Any Other Region.
The median LATAM Media publisher Tweeted 1,561 times in Q3 - or more than twice as often as the next most-talkative region - but that was actually 7% less than they Tweeted in Q2. A lot of this activity could be coming from new media and radio, which are common in the region, and which often see new accounts get established and build up Follower bases with heavy activity. As the media market matures and saturates, this should drop a little bit - but expect the number of Tweets out of LATAM to stay well above any other region for the foreseeable future.
LATAM Media Publishers promote only 3% of their Facebook posts.
That figure is the lowest in the world this quarter, but also represents a 16.8% increase from Q2. As Media publishers adapt to new post types and figure out what content mix works best for them, that number will rise - maybe not in Q4, but soon after if not. For now, Media publishers should perfect their content mix, and figure out what post types get them the most efficient engagement and drive their goals most effectively. Executive Summary Brazil
Links to other websites gained 18.5% more engagement in Q3 than in Q2.
In Q3, the median link from a Brazilian Media Page would have had 248 Interactions, or 18.5% more than they did in Q2 and 58% more than they did in Q3 2015. While engagement on links has tended to decline around the world, their success in Brazil re-emphasizes the importance of individual benchmarking. For each media publisher, benchmarking should dictate whether linking to your website or posting directly to Facebook is optimal. To see how effective link posts are for your page, try benchmarking social metrics against clicks to your website, and see which post type really got your content the most attention.
Video engagement is only up 58.7% from Q3 2015.
Considering how quickly most of the rest of the world has engaged with video posts on Facebook, that increase is on the low side. This could mean that Brazilian video has room to grow. Changes to Facebook’s algorithm several months ago should make that likely, as posts that Fans share will take priority in News Feeds over content posted by Company or Media Pages. As content becomes widely shared, more Media publishers will begin to recognize high-quality videos, and the trend will pick up speed.
Brazilian Twitter growth has slowed to 2.2%.
That rate of Follower growth on Twitter is the world’s slowest, and a year-over-year slowdown of 64% is also the world’s most drastic figure. But Brazilian pages also have the world’s most Followers on average, with a median figure of 89,795 Followers per account. That means the Brazilian Twitter environment is mature, and Media publishers should expect this number to continue declining while overall community sizes remain healthy. To cater to this experienced, fluent audience, Media publishers should post a mix of content and track where their posts travel across the social web. Executive Summary Europe, Middle East and Africa
2,169 Media Publishers on Twitter, growing at a rate of 4%.
There are more Media publishers on Twitter in EMEA than anywhere else in the world - almost 3x as many as the next busiest region - and they are adding Followers at a 4% growth rate, which is the world’s highest rate. But with a median of only 41,074 Followers for each account, EMEA media publishers also run some of the world’s smallest Twitter operations. Follower Growth has slowed steadily throughout the year, with a 19% decline from Q2 growth, so two things will likely happen with this proliferation of accounts: either more accounts will open to smaller Follower bases as large Media publishers open specialized, targeted accounts, or large Media publishers will condense their already-diverse networks of accounts into fewer, easier-to-manage Twitter accounts.
Interactions on Tweets are up 48% for the year.
While EMEA Media publishers experienced a slight decline in engagement this past quarter, their overall engagement is strong, particularly considering the small median community size of an EMEA Media account. In a small, Twitter-fluent market like EMEA, quarterly fluctuations in engagement likely are not indicative of a larger trend. Media marketers can capture their audience’s attention with innovative, cutting-edge content.
Facebook Fan Growth fell by 24% in Q3.
Roughly following annual growth trends, Fan Growth slowed down for EMEA Media Pages this past quarter by 24%. But interactions have stayed fairly constant from Q2, so the slowdown in growth is not negatively affecting results. In order to engage the smaller base of new Fans and turn them into loyal audiences, Media marketers will have to begin promoting more of their top posts in Q4. Executive Summary Japan & Asia Pacific
Media Pages published 11.1% more Facebook posts in Q3 than in Q2.
JAPAC Media pages increased their output at a rate 4x than any other region. With 15.8% growth year-over-year, you can expect to see the amount of content that JAPAC Media publishers post to continue increasing. While the quarterly growth rate is less than the annual growth rate, which could predict slowing growth, the increasing engagement that these posts are earning suggests that such a slow down will not happen. We recommend that JAPAC Media publishers follow simple best practices in benchmarking and promoting their best-performing content, making sure to get the most efficient engagement possible.
Facebook videos increased engagement 13.1% from Q2.
JAPAC pages experienced the world’s largest quarterly growth in engagement on videos published to Facebook in Q3. While these pages’ annual growth in interactions of 69.2% is actually in line with the rest of the world, only this region sustained that growth in Q3. That could imply that the kind of growth other regions experienced earlier in the year just happened later in JAPAC, which would predicate a slowdown in Q4. Of course, that does not mean JAPAC Media marketers should stop investing in great video content for Facebook - it just means that the vertical is likely approaching, or at, it’s peak, and will likely level off in the near-term future as Fans become accustomed to video content and demand increasing quality.
Median engagement is way up - 17.6% from Q2 and 30.3% from Q3 2015.
Nowhere in the world do Media publishers get quite as much engagement on Page posts as they do in JAPAC. Pages see a median of 101,064 Interactions on Page posts, and that number is rising much faster than anywhere else in the world as well - the next closest quarterly growth rate is 3.3%. While other regions saw similar annual growth in engagement and then experienced slower growth in engagement this quarter, JAPAC’s wider adoption of mobile-first social networks should have positive feedback for Facebook marketing as well, as growth on some networks will continue to drive growth on other networks in Q4. Executive Summary Australia & New Zealand
Fan Growth down 30.4% from Q2.
Australian and New Zealand’s Media Facebook Pages have seen Fan Growth slow down by 30.4%, compared to Q2’s growth rate. For the world’s smallest Media Pages in terms of median Community Size, this doesn’t mean users are moving away from following Media publishers on Facebook. Rather, it means the market is maturing, and engagement will become more important than growth for most outlets. This slow down in growth will probably level out soon. In order to cultivate their existing Fan base, Media marketers should begin promoting their best content and should actively experiment with new, innovative formats and brand personalities.
Media publishers are promoting 22.9% more content than they did in Q2.
In Q3, Media publishers promoted 6.5% of their content - 22.9% more than they did in Q2, and 44.6% more than they did one year ago in Q3 2015. This increase is happening all over the world, but more distinctly in smaller markets like Australia and New Zealand. Because there are fewer audience members and less volatile trends in media content, it is more important to engage people as best as possible with what content Media publishers already post. In other words, Media marketers need to have more efficient content strategies here, relative to the rest of the world.
Video posts declined in engagement by 1.2% from Q2.
In Q3, Media publishers in Australia and New Zealand saw less engagement with their videos than they did in Q2 - the only place in the world where that happened. But it’s more a sign of a saturated market for videos, if anything, than a significant trend. Videos still make up nearly half of all Facebook posts by AUS/NZ Media publishers, and annual growth in engagement is at 37.7%. Marketers need to perfect their video content and promote their best videos - not worry that the age of Facebook video has already passed (it has not). Benchmarks North America
Community Size Activity
Total Fans Growing at Posts QoQ YoY 161 363 4% 530 5.9% 5.0%
Engagement Paid Media
Amount of Interactions QoQ YoY QoQ YoY Promoted Post 88 671 2.2% 11.3% 4% 49.4% 26%
Post Engagement by Type
Links Photos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 115 2.3% 25.3% 170 2.9% 21%
Statuses Videos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 20 4.5% 51% 239 2.5% 63.8% Benchmarks Latin America
Community Size Activity
Total Fans Growing at Posts QoQ YoY 121 470 5% 952 2.5% 5.1%
Engagement Paid Media
Amount of QoQ Interactions QoQ YoY Promoted Post YoY 86 690 1.7% 37% 3% 16.8% 13%
Post Engagement by Type
Links Photos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 79 7.3% 27.9% 124 0.1% 9.4%
Statuses Videos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 27 22.9% 13.7% 180 5.6% 63.8% Benchmarks Brazil
Community Size Activity
Total Fans Growing at Posts QoQ YoY 194 630 2% 414 0.8% 3.4%
Engagement Paid Media
Amount of QoQ Interactions QoQ YoY Promoted Post YoY 90 196 6.2% 10.6% 5% 33.8% 12%
Post Engagement by Type
Links Photos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 241 18% 58% 254 7.1% 3.2%
Statuses Videos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 56 32.2% 10.3% 369 9.8% 58.7% Benchmarks Europe, Middle East and Africa
Community Size Activity
Total Fans Growing at Posts QoQ YoY 62 092 4% 402 3.6% 15.5%
Engagement Paid Media
Amount of QoQ Interactions QoQ YoY Promoted Post YoY 29 464 0.4% 40% 4% 10.4% 25%
Post Engagement by Type
Links Photos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 61 4.5% 14.4% 111 4.6% 17.2%
Statuses Videos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 28 5.4% 3.7% 159 1.7% 83.8% Benchmarks Japan & Asia Pacific
JAPAC
Community Size Activity
Total Fans Growing at Posts QoQ YoY 213 073 4% 580 11.1% 15.8%
Engagement Paid Media
Amount of QoQ Interactions QoQ YoY Promoted Post YoY 101 064 17.6% 30.3% 5% 14.9% 11.9%
Post Engagement by Type
Links Photos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 161 7.3% 25.6% 248 1.2% 16.2%
Statuses Videos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 57 5.8% 21.1% 286 13.1% 62.9% Top Content Australia & New Zealand
Australia / New Zealand
Community Size Activity
Total Fans Growing at Posts QoQ YoY 58 658 5% 349 0.9% 15.2%
Engagement Paid Media
Amount of QoQ Interactions QoQ YoY Promoted Post YoY 35 808 3.3% 34.3% 6% 22.9% 44.6%
Post Engagement by Type
Links Photos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 64 10.3% 17% 151 2.6% 3.7%
Statuses Videos
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 26 18.9% 23% 163 1.2% 37.7% Top Content North America
Baby First TV 31st August, 2016 Fox News CBS News The easiest way to save a scorched pan without 8th September, scrubbing! 30th September, 2016 2016
In an incredible show of support, a high school These adorable baby pandas just made their football team in California places orange roses world debut at the feet of a cheerleader who is battling Watch more: http://cbsn.ws/2cItMbF leukemia. Orange is the color of leukemia awareness.
Total Interactions 2 848 436
Reactions 456 851
Total Interactions 1 967 227 Comments 181 491 Total Interactions 1 615 457
Reactions 1 206 098 Shares 2 210 094 Reactions 497 552
Comments 36 003 Comments 248 361
Shares 725 126 Shares 869 544 Top Content Latin America
Teleprogreso Mi canal 7th August, Teletrece 2016 LaRed TV 6th July, 12nd August You have to see the baby who has stolen the 2016 hearts of everybody training like Rocky Balboa. 2016
This amazing procedure is looking to be What will think that teacher of the 22 gold an “eco-friendly” alternative to traditional medals of Michael Phelps? No one tells you cremations... :O that you can’t, especially those who have not tried it
Total Interactions 4 152 094
Reactions 718 285
Total Interactions 1 421 589 Comments 233 012 Total Interactions 1 202 510
Reactions 299 876 Shares 3 200 797 Reactions 278 601
Comments 22 839 Comments 17 397
Shares 1 098 874 Shares 906 512 Top Content Brazil
METROPO- LITANA FM 20th Rede Globo September, Rede Globo 2016 16th September, 21st August, 2016 Just here has 7 x the next Iphone, Iphone 7 2016 comes out this Monday (26) in the @metro- politanafm, use the tag #iphone7emetropoli- tana and ready, it’s already running, yes!! These adorable baby pandas just made their IT’S GOOOOOOOOOLD! IT IS world debut OURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THIS IS BRAZIL!!!!! Finally it Watch more: http://cbsn.ws/2cItMbF came!!!!!!! The Male Brazilian National Football Team beats Germany in penalties and win the Olympic Gold!!!! This is BRAZIL!!!!!!!!!!
Total Interactions 1 092 011
Reactions 105 965
Total Interactions 753 767 Comments 619 861 Total Interactions 745 831
Reactions 627 511 Shares 366 185 Reactions 371 403
Comments 15 973 Comments 10 909
Shares 110 283 Shares 363 519 Top Content Europe, Middle East and Africa
Daily Mail 5th August, 2016 KRONEHIT Virgin Radio - wir sind die This kid is wise beyond his years! Lebanon meiste musik 10th September, 4th August, 2016 2016 Ummm...why didn’t they teach this at school?! Das KRONEHIT Facebook-Posting XL! Poste HIER deinen Kommentar. Ist dein Kom- mentar mehr als drei Minuten der Neueste, bekommst du 10.000 Euro...
Total Interactions 2 782 378
Reactions 1 079 343
Total Interactions 2 775 459 Comments 76 656 Total Interactions 1 705 491
Reactions 24 667 Shares 1 626 379 Reactions 327 715
Comments 2 748 432 Comments 75 792
Shares 2 360 Shares 1 301 984 Top Content Japan & Asia Pacific
GMA News 29th September, 2016 Detikcom Laughing BREAKING: Pumanaw na si dating Sen. 4th July, Miriam Defensor Santiago, ayon sa kaniyang Colours 2016 mister na si Jun Santiago. 10th September, FULL STORY: http://gmane.ws/2dmEgJG 2016
Pengebom bunuh diri menyerang tiga kota Mumbai airport celebrating Independence di Arab Saudi, yakni Madinah, Qatif dan day Jeddah #PrayForMadinah
Total Interactions 1 152 797
Reactions 591 244
Total Interactions 1 044 431 Comments 74 524 Total Interactions 895 885
Reactions 1 011 653 Shares 487 029 Reactions 843 467
Comments 21 337 Comments 2 980
Shares 11 441 Shares 49 438 Top Content Australia & New Zealand
news.com.au 25th August, 2016 7 News Perth HuffPost Show this to your friends. Show it to your 19th September, family. Show it to everyone you know. Australia 2016 #ItCanWait 27th August, 2016
HAPPY 50TH CERRO! Petflix and chill. Students and staff at Perth Zoo are cele- (via JukinVideo) brating the 50th birthday of Cerro. As you can see the Galápagos tortoise enjoyed his watermelon cake. MORE I http://yhoo.it/2cjoi75
Total Interactions 1 325 565
Reactions 719 071
Total Interactions 545 652 Comments 40 378 Total Interactions 440 326
Reactions 174 375 Shares 566 116 Reactions 135 408
Comments 41 824 Comments 62 618
Shares 329 453 Shares 242 300 Benchmarks North America
Community Size
Followers Growing at 74 391 3.58%
Activity
Tweets Growing at 722 7%
Engagement
Interactions Growing at 11 025 8% Benchmarks Latin America
Community Size
Followers Growing at 67 013 3.83%
Activity
Tweets Growing at 1561 7%
Engagement
Interactions Growing at 10 406 3% Benchmarks Brazil
Community Size
Followers Growing at 89 795 2.2%
Activity
Tweets Growing at 637 1%
Engagement
Interactions Growing at 5 615 20% Benchmarks Europe, Middle East and Africa
Community Size
Followers Growing at 41 074 4%
Activity
Tweets Growing at 827 6%
Engagement
Interactions Growing at 5 242 6% Benchmarks Japan & Asia Pacific
Community Size
Followers Growing at 77 933 3.19%
Activity
Tweets Growing at 1020 15%
Engagement
Interactions Growing at 14 062 15% Benchmarks Australia & New Zealand
Community Size
Followers Growing at 17 203 3.24%
Activity
Tweets Growing at 486 7%
Engagement
Interactions Growing at 3217 7% Benchmarks Global
Median Community Size
Followers QoQ YoY 114 792 30% 12.7%
Activity Engagement
Amount of Post QoQ YoY QoQ YoY Promoted Post 199 6.1% 9.3% 132 843 - % 88.2%
Post Engagement Post Engagement
Interactions QoQ YoY Interactions QoQ YoY 694 2.9% 42.3% 476 7.8% 18.7% For more information, contact [email protected]
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