Social media has conquered almost all aspects of human life. Giving quick access to information and keeping you connected with global economy, social media has catered to the increasing fast-paced life.
Global brands, politicians, celebrities and even government institutions are using social media to reach out people around the world. The presence of smartphones have boosted social media memberships. Increasing social media activities have been observed in Indonesia, one of the top five social-media markets in the world. Let us explore how active Indonesians are on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram – three highly popular social media platforms.
Facebook, Social Media with Most Active Users Worldwide
From 1.4 billion Facebook users worldwide, Indonesia ranked 4th in the world with 65 million active users, following after United States, Brazil, and India. The brainchild of Mark Zuckerberg and his colleagues has become a global favorite. Even popular brands in Indonesia – including Batik Indonesia, Yamaha, Blackberry, and Chocolatos – market their commercials with a link to ‘Like’ their Facebook page. Each brand carries strong local flavor and interacts well with its audience. The global membership in Facebook has altered marketing strategies of many companies as Facebook provides an easy and affordable platform for quick dissemination of information. To have better collaborations with local business partners, Facebook has just recently opened a branch office in Jakarta, located in the Pacific Place building.
On Facebook, videos go viral and everybody shares whatever they like in the newsfeed. In fact, a lot of social movements were surfaced due to these social media activities. We cannot ignore the fact that the Egyptian revolution sprouted up through a Facebook page. Political scenarios in Indonesia were heated up online as well. Joko Widodo, the current Governor of Jakarta, has a very active Facebook fan page. With an effective use of social media for online campaigns, he won the elections in September 2012 against Fauzi Bowo.
Twitter, Fastest Growing Social Network
Twitter is one of the fastest growing public companies with 44% growth in 2013. With about 550 million active users, Twitter captures the global heartbeat with its tweeting addiction. The social media network is increasingly accessible through phone. The ability to attach pictures and links has made it a more engaging platform over the years. Numerous celebrities and brands have verified official Twitter accounts. A lot of important news breaks also make their way through tweets. In fact, most of active users do not tweet but use it solely for information sources.
Indonesians are one of the most active Twitter users. In 2012, Jakarta made several headlines as the world’s most active Twitter city followed by Tokyo, London, Manchester, England and New York. Every second, Indonesians send around 15 tweets!
Popular hashtags by Indonesians include #republictwitter, an Indonesian film that sheds light on Indonesia’s love affair with social media, especially with Twitter. In fact, Indonesia even has buzzers, a name coined for an Indonesian Twitter user who has more than 2000 followers. These individuals are paid to promote people and commercial brands through their tweets. Most followed brands by Indonesians on Twitter include BlogDokter, detikHealth and Beasiswa Indonesia. Indonesian song-writer, singer, actress, and producer Agnezmo won the popularity awards in the 4th annual Shorty Awards. Twitter campaigns by Indonesian soccer player, Irfan Bachdim, for Pocari Sweat bagged global coverage due to retweets by Irfan’s fans and followers.
Instagram, Hash Tags Everywhere
Through the use of hashtags, companies around the world are posting pictures which customers can relate to as marketing strategies. With about 150 million active users,Instagram is a well-liked platform for pictures and videos sharing. Acquired by Facebook in 2012, the social media service has experienced an increase of 23% active users in the last 6 months. Its growing importance on social media may be due to the fact that about 65% of the world’s commercial brands post at least one picture in Instagram each week.
With about 280,000 followers, Indonesian First Lady Ani Yudhyono actively interacts with her followers and shares her passion for photography. She even invited 25 instagramers for an InstaMeet. However, her participation on Instagram has become a sensation due to her outbursts to her followers on Instagram.
