Do you know what social media success looks like for your business?
As in most areas of marketing, results will vary by industry, target audience, and ability to create content that attracts customers.
Rival IQ has released its annual 2023 Social Media Benchmark Report, which compares brands across 14 industries with their social media performance against other brands in the same competitive landscape.
The dataset includes social media engagement across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter for 2,100 companies across a wide range of industries, from food and beverage to technology.
The analyzed companies’ Facebook followers range from 25,000 to 1,000,000, and all have over 5,000 followers on Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter.
Below are the key insights marketers need to know.
Total Commitment
Between 2019 and 2022, all industries saw a decline in overall engagement on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Facebook and Twitter showed only a slight change in engagement.
For Facebook, it fell to 0.06% in 2021 and maintained that rate the following year. Twitter declined 0.01% between 2019 and 2022.
Weekly posting has fallen from 5.8 to 5 posts per week on Facebook and from 5.4 to 3.9 posts per week on Twitter for both networks over time.
On the other hand, Instagram saw a much larger drop from 1.22% to 0.47%. But unlike Facebook and Twitter, weekly posting on this platform has increased from 4.3 to 4.5 posts per week.
Facebook engagement
Across all industries, Facebook’s average engagement rate per follower post is 0.06%.
The average number of weekly posts across all industries is 5.04, with media posting the most at 73.5 posts per week. This is likely because media companies publish more news content than brands in other industries.
Instagram engagement
Across all industries, Instagram’s average engagement rate per post from followers is 0.47%.
The average number of weekly posts across all industries is 4.6, with sports teams posting the most at 15.6 posts per week.
TikTok engagement
Across all industries, TikTok’s average engagement rate per post from followers is 5.69%.
The average number of videos per week across all industries is 1.75, with media posting the most at 4.2 times per week.
Twitter engagement
Across all industries, Twitter’s average engagement rate per post from followers is 0.035%.
The average number of weekly tweets across all industries is 3.91, with media tweeting the most at 70.2 times per week.
Top Post Types
The best types of posts on each social network vary by industry.
Photo and video posts get the most engagement on Facebook, while link and status posts have the least.
Screenshot of Rival IQ, March 2023
For Instagram, the data suggests that businesses should focus their content creation efforts on reels, carousels, and photos. Video posts that aren’t uploaded as reels tend to have the least engagement.
On Twitter, posts with photos, videos, and status show the most engagement, while tweets with links tend to have the least engagement.
Top Hashtags
Hashtags vary significantly by industry and platform. Holiday hashtags generate the most engagement across industries, while contests and giveaways have lost popularity compared to previous years.
Screenshot of Rival IQ, March 2023 key takeaways
The key takeaway is that each industry’s audience is slightly different. While food and beverage brands see the best engagement with Instagram Reels, higher education brands see the best engagement with Instagram carousels.
To get the most out of your social media strategy, find ways to transform your content into the format that drives the best engagement on each of the leading social networks. This ensures that you reach the most potential customers with the content they enjoy consuming.
For 100+ pages of industry insights, visit Rival IQ and download the 2023 Social Media Bookmark Report.
Featured Image: 13_Phunkod/Shutterstock
