Social media is a very fine way to reach your target audience and build your brand in Germany. Each social media channel has its own strengths and features. In this article, we will tell you what the ten most popular social media channels are with our eastern neighbors. The right mix of organic content and paid campaigns is essential, but the first step is to select the social media channels that suit your brand. It is wise to get advice on this from a specialist. What are the most important social media channels?
1. YouTube
Topping the list is YouTube! 72.6 million Germans are active on YouTube every month. Given the numbers, YouTube is becoming one of the most important marketing channels for brands seeking to achieve prominence in the German market. The platform is growing by more than 10 percent per year. YouTube is especially interesting if your video marketing is central to making your brand and products known. Both with video Ads and influencers, you can best bring an emotional charge to your brand or product. Especially if you are still relatively unknown in Germany, targeting your audience offers many opportunities.
2. WhatsApp
Although Whatsapp is not a social network, it is the largest digital medium with more than 50 million daily users in Germany. That is a large proportion of the 82 million people living in Germany.Germans particularly value their digital privacy; 'Datenschutz'. Therefore, be very careful when using this medium for your marketing.
3. Facebook
The German Facebook user shows a slightly different Internet behavior: he is generally more reserved in interaction. For example, on Facebook he is not nearly as generous with likes or shares as the Dutch, but once a German follows your Facebook page, he is also much more loyal. Whereas a Dutchman will quickly drop out after one or two unwelcome posts, for the German the rule is much more often: "once a customer - always a customer" - and that of course offers great opportunities. In Germany, with 32 million active users, Facebook is the number one social media channel for mass marketing. However, the growth has slowed down and channels such as Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn are growing in popularity.
4. Instagram
Do you sell fashion, travel or lifestyle products? Then Instagram is a good channel to reach your target audience. In Germany, Instagram has about 31.6 million users and this number is growing steadily. 31.4% of Instagram users are between 24 and 35 years old. On Instagram, users are younger on average than on Facebook and you can reach them ideally through influencers and ad campaigns. We expect Instagram to have overtaken Facebook soon. Fortunately, Meta allows you to manage both platforms very well.
5. TikTok
TikTok is the new kid on the block in Germany and not without success. This medium has 19.51 million active German users and is becoming increasingly popular, especially among young people. Germany is among the top ten countries with the most users and is one of the fastest growing markets. 73 percent of those surveyed between the ages of 16 and 19 said they use TikTok. In contrast, among respondents in the 50 to 59 age group, 13 percent were using TikTok. If you have a focus on a young audience, you can score points by using this channel well.
6. Pinterest
Pinterest use is also growing steadily. The number of users who regularly "pin" photos is around 16 million in Germany. Pinterest's target audience is clearly more mature than that of Instagram or TikTok and uses the channel primarily as a channel for inspiration. Because nowadays you can also sell your products on Pinterest, it becomes an interesting platform for everything to do with garden, home and visual inspiration. Pinterest should not be missing from the B2C social media mix these days.
7. XING (B2B)
Every market requires its own marketing strategy and so does a social media strategy. In Germany, for example, you cannot overlook XING. This, in the Netherlands unknown business medium, has as many as 18.1 million users in Germany. It is growing relatively slowly, but steadily. The ARD/ZDF-Studie study estimates that about half of the users are active on the medium. Xing offers many opportunities in Germany, especially in the field of recruitment.
8. LinkedIn (B2B)
The likewise business medium LinkedIn has about 15 million German-speaking users. This makes LinkedIn smaller than XING, which manages to keep its competitors at bay. In addition, the ARD / ZDF survey shows that only a third of LinkedIn users are active users, which is considerably less than XING. However, a change is currently taking place in favor of LinkedIn because here the international opportunities are more interesting. LinkedIn offers more extensive advertising opportunities and is therefore particularly interesting for B2B marketing.
9. X (formerly Twitter)
X has between 7.75 million monthly German Twitter users. Again, the exact number is hard to say. Globally, Twitter has 320 million monthly active users. So the number of users of this social medium is not growing. According to the ARD / ZDF online research, the number in Germany is around 4 million. This is still more than in the Netherlands, where the number of Twitter users fell from 3.3 million to 2.8 million in 2015. Twitter use is declining here among almost all age groups.
10. Snapchat
This medium has more than 5 million German users. 60 percent of them are 18 years or older. Snapchat is still among the most downloaded mobile apps in the app store.
Do you too want you to have an optimal mix of social media channels? Then get in touch with us!
