20+ Facts About The Psychology of Social Sharing
Anyone who does a study that can give insight inside the reasons why people do the things they do online has my attention. When the New York Times does a study that analyzes the psychology of sharing in the age of social media, it’s time to grab a cup of coffee and take a good look at what they have to say.
Not surprisingly, the number one reason people share things online is value & entertainment (tie). That is just one of many brilliant insights shared through an excellent infographic created by StatPro below.
Be sure to scroll down beneath it for over 20 ready-to-tweet stats that load directly into your Buffer or your Twitter feed with the click of a button!
The Psychology of Social Sharing [Infographic]
6 Types of Social Sharers
Here is a fun way to look at the 6 different types of people who share content on social media to give you a better idea of their emotional motivations for sharing.
1. Hipsters
These sharers are creative, young and popular but less likely than other sharers to use email for sharing content.
2. Careerist
These sharers are savvy business networkers and are more likely to share content on LinkedIn.
3. The Altruist
These sharers are helpful, reliable, thoughtful, connected and only use email to share.
4. Selectives
These sharers are resourceful, careful and thoughtful. They share informative content via social networks as well as by email.
5. Boomerangs
These sharers will share content and information to get a reaction and to feel validated. They are empowered by social media and tend to use both Twitter and Facebook.
6. Connectors
These sharers are creative, relaxed, thoughtful and use social media as a tool to organize their offline social lives.
We all share content for different reasons
- 94% – Value & Entertainment (Tweet this stat!)
- 84% – Promote Causes (Tweet this stat!)
- 78% – Nourish Relationships (Tweet this stat!)
- 69% – Self-fulfillment (Tweet this stat!)
- 68% – Define Identity (Tweet this stat!)
25% of Facebook users don’t bother with privacy settings
Two new members join LinkedIn every second
YouTube reaches more US adults aged 18-34 than any cable network
90% of content is generated by 2% of Twitter users
There are now over 150 million Instagram users
50% of Pinterest users have children and 80% of users are women
23% of users check Facebook 5 or more times per day
The Psychology of Sharing: How We Share
55-64 age bracket is the fastest growing demographic on Twitter
189 million of Facebook’s users are ‘mobile only’
32% of Fortune 500 CEOs have at least one profile on a social network.
68% have no social presence whatsoever.
16% of CEOs used social media for customer communication in 2012, that is expected to increase to 57% by 2017
140 Fortune 500 CEOs are on LinkedIn
90% of executives check their inboxes regularly (email is king for CEOs)
1 million websites are integrated with Facebook
67% of Twitter users are far more likely to buy from the brands they follow on Twitter
85% of people feel more connected to a business when following them
82% of buyers say they trust a company more when its CEO is active in social media
How Do You Share Content?
Now that we’ve seen some of the data, I want to discuss what compels you to share something on social media. Think about some of the content you have been driven to share and comment below on your personal insights into the psychology behind your sharing on social media.
Here’s a little something that I think we’ve all seen by now but it’s such a wonderful example of content that is irresistible to share. Kudos to WestJet and their marketing team for pulling off such a brilliant stunt.
Aside from heart warming videos like this one, what type of content are you always driven to share on social media? Leave a comment below.
