Social networks have revolutionized our lives for several years, and it does not look like they are going to go out of fashion, so I wanted to publish this post as a complete guide on social networks , how to take advantage of them to generate web traffic, and I also want to mention which are themost used social networks worldwide.
I know that everyone knows that it is a social network, but in case you have woken up from a coma after 20 years, or if you lost yourself in the Amazon before 2000 and have finally found you, I want to start by explaining that they are social networks .
What are social networks
Social networks are web pages or platforms on the Internet that allow you to connect with people around the world: friends, contacts, acquaintances, partners, coworkers, etc., establishing a virtual contact, being able to share content with them and interact with them. different ways.
We could call social networks networks where we can relate to people from all over the world with different purposes. In most cases it is just entertainment, but there are also networks focused on other purposes, such as getting a job or working relationships.
Who invented social networks?
Currently there are hundreds of social networks, as you can see a little below, but who invented social networks? How did this idea come about?
The first social network emerged in 1997 and was called Six Degrees . It was created by the company Macroview and it was possible to create user profiles and friend lists.
Around 2003, new social networks began to emerge that facilitated the interaction between people, and in a matter of years, we have been overwhelmed by social networks of all kinds, which we will mention below, in the most complete list of social networks that exists.
Who uses social networks?
Well, the truth is that today practically everyone uses at least one social network. I think I do not know anyone, who does not have at least a profile in a social network. Even my mother has Facebook
Why are social networks so important?
Simply because as we have said before, social networks is where everyone is currently, and they are one of the most used methods to generate web traffic to a blog or a web page.
Whatever type of online business you have, I'm almost sure that you're interested in your potential customers or readers can find you on the networks. Thanks to social networks, you can generate web traffic to your website to get revenue, either free of charge by viralizing your content, or by investing in an advertising campaign in Facebook Ads.
Influence of social networks
An important point to address could be how social networks influence adolescents (who are for hours and hours connected to them) or how they influence everyone in general when making decisions, buying a product, etc. Another point to debate could be why social networks cause addiction.
Who has not done a search on social networks or has asked for opinions from their friends on Facebook ever before making a decision about a product?
By the way ... Did you know that you can make money thanks to Facebook? If you are interested in this topic, you can take a look at my post Win money with Facebook .
Types of social networks
Today (January 2017) there are all kinds of social networks with the most disparate themes:
- Social networks to link
- Social networks for companies
- Social networks to meet people
- Social networks to find a partner
- Social networks for children
- Social networks for dating
- Social networks to learn languages
- Social networks for teenagers
- Social networks for writers
- Social networks for photographers
- Social networks for professionals
- Social networks to look for work
- Social networks to sell
- Social networks for adults
- Social networks for musicians
- Social networks for artists
- ...
There are platforms such as WordPress , which really is not a social network in itself, but it does form a community of people that can interact with each other, so if we could consider it a social network.
The same goes for WhatsApp , which really is an instant messaging application, but it can also be considered a social network, since it serves to interact with our contacts, share content with them, etc.
Let's see below the most used social networksdepending on the type of social network or the public they are focused on. Let's start by seeing which are the most used worldwide.
The most used social networks
1. Facebook . It is the most used and most popular social network worldwide, with the exception of China. It has more than 1,500 million users and it is possible to interact with friends as well as get customers and sales. By the way, if you have a business or a company you may be interested in knowing how to create a Facebook page .
2. YouTube . YouTube is the second most visited social network in the world and the first online video platform. Creating a video on YouTube is a good way to publicize your brand, and if you get it viral, you can generate a lot of web traffic to your website. YouTube has more than 1,000 million users.
3. Whatsapp . This application allows you to send and receive messages are any cost. You can also create contact groups in it. It has more than 1,000 million users.
4. Google Plus . This social network belongs to Google and emerged as a "great alternative" to Facebook, although it has not come to overshadow it. It has more than 500 million users.
5. LinkedIn . It is the most known social network for professionals worldwide with more than 400 million users.
6. Instagram . Created in 2010, this social network has had a spectacular growth, especially among teenagers. It is the social network par excellence to share photographs and videos of short duration. It has about 400 million users.
7. Twitter . Social network with which short messages are shared, as well as images, links, etc. It is one of the most popular social networks and used by celebrities with millions of fans, companies to inform their customers, etc. More than 300 million users.
These are the 7 most popular and popular social networks , although there are many more that we will see below.
Social video networks
- Youtube . As we have mentioned previously, this is the largest social network of content in video format in the world.
- Vimeo . Important social network of videos with more than 200 million users.
- Stickman . Social network to share videos and use instant messaging. You have about 8 million users.
- Funnyordi e. Social network with comedy videos. Users can rate the videos they see.
Business social networks
- LinkedIn . We have already mentioned it before as the most well-known and used social network for professionals, especially to get a job.
- Approach . Social network where professionals from different sectors can ask questions to get answers from experts.
- Viadeo . Social network with 35 million users worldwide. Used mostly in Europe by business owners and entrepreneurs.
- Xing . Social platform very similar to LinkedIn focused on the interaction between entrepreneurs from China and Europe.
Social networks for teenagers and young people
- Instagram . As we have already mentioned, it is very popular among young people and teenagers. If your business is focused on a young audience, you have to have an Instagram account.
- Snapchat . Also very popular among teenagers with content that is shared and soon erased.
- Habbo . Social network aimed at an adolescent audience with about 200 million users. Teenagers interact with each other with virtual avatars.
- WeeWorld . Focused on teenagers (between 10 and 17 years old). It is a virtual world where users interact and play video games online.
Social networks of meetings
- MyLife . The old reunion.com , is a social network to find old friends, family, coworkers, etc. It has 30 million users.
- Classmates . Focused on finding old school and high school classmates.
- MyHeritage . This social network is a family tree where you can share photos, post comments and genealogies of families.
Social networks of tourism
- CouchSurfing . Social network focused on travelers so they can get to know each other and open their homes and sofas to travelers in the area.
- Tripadvisor . Social network where to share opinions and experiences, compare prices ...
- TravBuddy . Network of travelers where you can share tips, opinions, photographs, etc.
- Wayn . Social network with about 10 million users where to share ideas about travel.
Original and different social networks
- Buzznet . Network to participate in virtual communities around music and pop culture.
- WeRead . Social network for book lovers, where to share new books and interests.
- Flixter . Film social network, where you share and comment movies with your contacts.
- Last.FM . Ideal for music lovers. It has about 30 million users.
- Blackplanet . Social network of African-Americans with 20 million users.
- DeviantART . Social network for artists where they can share their work.
- VampireFreaks . Network for lovers of gothic culture. It has about 2 million users.
- ASmallWorld . Global network of high society. It is accessed by invitation.
Social networks of photographs
- Flickr Social network to exchange photos of all kinds.
- Instagram . I will mention it again since it has to be part of this group because it is the social network of photographs par excellence.
- Fotolog . Social network of photographs popular in the Latin world (Spain and South America). It has about 25 million users.
- Pinterest . Social network making its way with force with more than 100 million users.
Social media in real time
The data on the use we give to social networks are brutal. You can see below some information about its use in real time.
Via: Websa100
Use of social networks in Spain
I want to share with you a very interesting infographic with data about the use that Spaniards use to social networks.
The following data stand out:
- We dedicate more than 5 hours a week to WhatsApp.
- Facebook is still the most used social network and among the favorite YouTube and Whatsapp.
- Twitter and Google Plus begin to fall.
- Instagram is the social network that continues to grow.
- More than 80% of the population uses social media.
- Spaniards on average use 5 social networks (Incredible).
Via: Expansion
Social networks as a marketing tool
I think it's already clear why one of the best marketing strategies is the use of social media . Everyone is in the networks and your content needs to go viral through the networks.
Some of the most used combinations today to make money online are Facebook traffic + monetize with Adsenseand Facebook traffic + monetize with affiliates , although it is also taking advantage of the traffic of other social networks to generate web traffic.
Something important to mention is that if you have a web page, it is almost mandatory that you have a social network profile, but it is also a mistake to try to be on all social networks.
You can already see that there are hundreds of social networks (I have not mentioned many more) and wanting to be in all would be a waste of time that you can take to make other things much more productive.
It is important that you analyze well to what type of audience you want to focus the content of your blog or website, and that you investigate which social networks are what they use. If you have a blog focused on teenagers, you should use Instagram, Snapchat, etc.
In general, I recommend focusing on 2 or maximum 3 social networks, being Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus the most used to spread content, but as I said, each case is different.
We have already reviewed that are social networks , which are the most used social networks and statistics of them, and now I would like to end this post with a little humor.
For this you can take a look at the post A bit of humor on social networks , but what you can not miss is the following video with a monologue on social networks
