New study finds Instagram accounts for 92% of brand social interactions

By

Kate Dingwall

Published
Jan 17, 2017

According to a new report released last week by L2, Instagram is leading the social media race, with the social platform now used 92% of the time during social interactions with brands.

L2’s fourth annual social media report analyses the scope and strategy of all the major social media platforms. The report looked at the impact each platform had on brands as well as an in-depth look at how various brands utilized social media platforms. 427 brands across nine verticals were examined for the report, including Activewear, Auto, Beauty, Beverages, Consumer Electronics, CPG, Fashion, Retail, Watches, and Jewelry.

Evan Neufeld, vice president of intelligence at L2, said about the report, “Asking how brands can respond to the algorithmic changes that Instagram and Facebook have made to news feeds is the equivalent of asking, ‘What do you do when Google changes its SEO algorithm?’ You adopt and adjust your focus accordingly. I think brands continue to wish that social media will slow down, stay stable, and not change. 

The report highlighted a key difference between Snapchat and Instagram. While Snapchat has seen a meteoric success in the past few years, it doesn’t quite compete against Instagram’s new Live feature. Nike’s most-watched Snapchat video brought in 66,000 viewers, while Nike’s first Instagram story brought in over 800,000 viewers.
Snapchat still was commended for its rapid ad innovation – the app launched its first retail product, the Snapchat Spectacles, as well as six new creative formats that brands can utilize. Nearly every major fashion brand hopped on board with Snapchat this year.

Other significant notes; Twitter has repositioned itself, moving more towards video advertising while Pinterest has opted for retargeted advertising. Instagram decreased its organic reach with its switch to a newsfeed algorithm (similar to the one Facebook uses).

The report also highlighted the top (and bottom) brands on each platform. H&M x Kenzo came out on top of YouTube and Snapchat with their use of advanced mobile videos. American Eagle’s #WeAllCan Facebook campaign and influencer strategy also received high marks.