When Facebook made the investment of buying Instagram in 2012, it only had 30 million active users. Today, there are over one billion active users Instagramming every day, and over one million of these are advertisers. In layman’s terms, Instagram is one of the best places online for marketing agencies, companies, brands and influencers to connect with their dream target audience.
Of course, anyone who is an expert in social media marketing knows that the answer to long-term success on Instagram with real followers is knowing your audience to a tee. So, with this in mind, who is this army that is one billion strong? And, perhaps more importantly, how can your knowledge of demographics on Instagram shape the way that you promote yourself or your brand on the social media giant?
Let’s take a look.
Article Contents
Age
As a mobile app that prioritizes photography as a medium more than any other social media platform out there, Instagram has naturally always been an attractive place to socialize for the younger generation. Younger demographics love that they can share high-quality content that’s easy to share through their smartphones that they can take anywhere.
Also, let’s not lie to ourselves – we all love the way that those Instagram filters make us look.
Let’s look at age as a demographic in terms of the stats. 7% of Instagram users are between the ages of 13-17, while 31% are between the ages of 18-24. The same percentage can be given to the age bracket of 25-34, while 15% belongs to those aged between 35 and 44. 9% of users on Instagram are aged between 45-54, while just 3% fall into the age bracket of 55-64 and 2% above the age of 65.
So, what does this all mean for your brand’s marketing campaign? Well, an impressive 69% of users on Instagram fall under the age of 35. However, you may be surprised to hear that not all Instagram users are under 35, and as many as 10% of Americans who are over 65 claims to use Instagram. These numbers are only growing.
Gender
No
w you know the most typical age for your average Instagram user, you’re probably wondering which is the most popular gender. Well, as of early 2018 39% of women were on Instagram, compared to 30% of men. However, when you look at the active users on Instagram, the divide is a bit more even, with 49.7% being male and 50.3% being female.
Of course, there is the option of not specifying your gender when you sign up for an account, and the majority of statistical reports don’t consider the third option that Instagram offers.
Location
Which country do you think has the most people using Instagram? If you answered the U.S., you’re right!
Believe it or not, 120 million of Instagram’s active users reside in the U.S. However, while this may seem like a significant number, remember this actually means that the rest of Instagram’s users – 80% – don’t live in America.
When it comes to determining Instagram’s location demographics, 42% of Instagram users live in urban environments. However, when it comes to the global market for Instagrammers, it’s a lot more diverse than you may initially think. America is obviously number one when it comes to Instagram users, and then India comes in second at 71 million users. The UK comes in second to last with 23 million users and Mexico last on the list with 21.9 million users. Between these two poles are Brazil, Turkey, Russia, Indonesia, Japan, and Iran.
So, it seems that there is a diverse range of locations that are using Instagram. It seems that no matter where you may go in the world, more and more people are catching onto the magic that is Instagram. However, while it may be easy to work out which locations are popular with Instagram, it’s a bit harder when determining which ethnic groups spend the most time on the social media giant.
This is because when you sign up for Instagram, you aren’t required to include your race or ethnicity. While this is great for equality, it does mean that there’s a lack of data when it comes to this particular demographic information.
In saying this, though, there was a study conducted in 2018 that suggested 43% of Instagram respondents were African American, which makes this the most common ethnicity to use the app. The second most common ethnicity to use Instagram was Hispanic, followed by white.
Education
Have you ever thought about how many of your followers on Instagram have a college degree?
While education may not be the biggest thing you’re thinking about when it comes to Instagram demographics, it is a crucial detail to know about your followers, especially if you’re trying to figure out the right marketing strategy to use on them. There would be no point uploading throwback pictures of college times if the majority of your followers didn’t attend one.
Statistics suggest that it’s more common for an Instagrammer to have a college degree than not, coming in at 42%. Interestingly, 31% have some form of college education.
This type of Instagram demographic is great for colleges to connect with their graduates and vice versa.
Income
There’s a lot more to being successful on this popular social media website than just targeting those followers who have the biggest income potential. However, if you’re looking for an audience that isn’t too tight on the purse strings, then you may want to use Instagram to your advantage. Interestingly, Instagram isn’t just made up of teenagers that are living off mom and dad.
Amazingly, 60% of Instagrammers have an income of $100K or higher. 46% earn between $80-$100K, while 55% earn between $70K-$80K. $60K-$70K belong to 36% while $40-$60K belong to 45%. So, what does this all mean for your business on Instagram?
Well, as you can see by these stats, there’s a lot of room on Instagram for big and small brands alike. If you want to connect your content with people who had a lot of money to throw down, then you’ve got a lot of opportunities on this social media platform. However, you don’t need to just offer luxury products to do really well.
What does all this mean, then? That there’s something for everyone on one of the most popular social media apps.
Instagram Demographics – Understanding Them
As valuable as companies consider Instagram demographics to be, they’re just skimming the surface when it comes to you figuring out the dream social media marketing strategy for your content.
One of the best ways to boost your Instagram account is to pin down your perfect target audience.
While learning more about Instagram statistics like these can be helpful in figuring out if it’s the right channel for your brand, it shouldn’t be the be all and end all when it comes to your marketing method.
To improve your chances of success and to become an expert on Instagram advertising, you’ve got to be constantly looking for new opportunities and ways to learn more about your audience. Here are a couple of ways that you can do this:
- Follow the performance of your campaign through a social media marketing tool like Stellation Media.
- Use Instagram Insights on your Instagram business account to see who the majority of your followers are and where they come from. This is also going to help you know what type of content they’re looking for.
- Conduct a poll with your existing followers and as them to fill out feedback forms in exchange for a voucher code or free gift.
If you’re not sure whether you’re doing what’s best for your Instagram, now could be the perfect opportunity to get some additional assistance.
Top Tools for Instagram Growth & Engagement
| Rank | Tool | Type | More Info |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seek Socially | Growth Service | Visit |
| 2 | Nitreo | Growth Service | Visit |
The team at Stellation Media can help you increase your likes, followers, and overall engagement on Instagram – no matter what target audience is interested in your product or service. Check out the free trial.
