What’s New in Europe? A Look into Social Media Use Sweeping the Continent

June 6, 2023

With the huge influence of the United States on social media, it’s easy to assume that the rest of the world behaves the same as we do on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, etc. While in some ways European countries share similarities with the U.S., they also have their own cultures and behaviors influencing social media use. The trends of the old world don’t completely align with those of the new. 

Popular Platforms for B2C Marketing

When it comes to the top trending platforms, Europe appears to be very similar to us. As of 2023, the list of platforms ranked in number of users is as follows: 1) Facebook (457 million users), 2) Instagram (281 million users), 3) Tiktok (227 million users). There is often an overlooked platform: WhatsApp. Owned by Meta, WhatsApp is the most popular messaging platform in Europe, making it a key resource for marketers because it allows for direct contact with consumers. The platform offers a feature known as WhatsApp for Business, which gives the user marketing tools. For example, Chatbots are a tool available for Whatsapp businesses, as are automated push notifications. Previously, ads that ran on Facebook and Instagram would have WhatsApp as their landing page, but with new EU laws, this is subject to change. Read more about current EU laws and news in our blog post. For B2C advertising, Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok and Whatsapp are the primary sites of interest, yet B2B social media is where Europe significantly breaks away from the U.S.

The European Way of B2B Marketing

LinkedIn is responsible for 80% of all B2B leads in Europe as a whole. However, from country to country, there are other platforms of importance to advertisers. If your goal is to penetrate the German business market, it is nearly impossible to do so without having a Xing account. Xing is an alternative to LinkedIn that is extremely popular in Germany and Switzerland. These two nations account for 60% of all Xing activity.

Similar to Xing, there is another alternative to LinkedIn known as Viadeo. Much like Germany is to Xing, France is to Viadeo. Viadeo is crucial to the French market. Worldwide, the site has over 40 million active professionals. It has a multi-local approach in which it “adapts its services to the particular needs of the region…”. Besides these two platforms, Europe has a couple other popular ones: Vkontakte (VK) and Odnoklassniki. These sites are mainly used in Eastern Europe and Russia and tend to have more restrictions, such as language requirements.

Here at SparkShoppe, we make sure to stay informed on the world of international business. Stay up-to-date on the latest marketing news by following us on social media and keeping up with our blog!

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