The Digital Data Insights of Kenya 2020 has just been released by Datareportal and the findings show that Kenyans have now fully embraced social media. Coming early on in the year, the report aims at highlighting the trends in the digital space. The insights in the report are useful for businesses seeking to reach their target market through social media.

It is now clear that the world is digital, and Kenya leads East Africa when it comes to internet penetration. There are a total 22.28million internet users in Kenya which represents about half of the entire population. This represents a growth of 13% in just a period of one year.

 

Numbers do not lie

Out of the 98% of Kenyans who have access to mobile phones, 88% have smartphones which they use to access the internet and especially social media. This is represented by individuals between the ages of 16 and 64 for whom social media is now a basic human activity. On average, an individual spends 3hours and 22min per day using social media and this represents a big share of their mind and time.

 

Kenyans are a Curious lot

The most popular websites in Kenya are Google and Youtube, while the most used social media platforms are WhatsApp, then followed by Facebook. It is interesting to note that most of the searched keywords have to do with betting and tutorials on Youtube explaining different concepts. WhatsApp has overtaken Facebook in usage because of its ease of use and for some, it is the basic means of communication.

Facebook, however, offers the best advertising platform, as it reports that 8m people can be reached by its adverts. This represents 23% of the total social media population, by itself a huge audience for any advertiser. 30.5% of Facebook pages are now using paid advertising as a result of this reach and the accuracy it offers in audience profiling. It is also important to note that video and image posts are the ones that receive the most engagement and clicks

 

What this means for Businesses

Kenyans are mobile thus businesses need to ensure that their websites have a good mobile user interface.  Using search engine optimization will ensure that businesses are visible and easily accessed by customers.

Never has it been more important for companies to embrace social media and actively engage their customers. Facebook advertising offers the best platform for businesses to reach their target audience and tailor the best messages that will help them meet their objectives. With the guaranteed 8 million users who can be reached by Facebook ads, it represents the best platform through which businesses can interact with their customers as well as acquire new customers and increase their sales.

The different content formats also allow businesses to be creative and interactive, and they can also share the same adverts to Instagram through Facebook.

Digital marketing is now an important part of any business’ marketing strategy and should be given enough attention and financial budget in terms of advertising.

 

In Summary

• There are 8.8million social media users in Kenya
• Kenyans have fully embraced social media, with all social media users actively using social media daily
• Facebook offers the best social advertising platform in terms of reach
• Businesses should ensure that they are active on social media
• The best way to reach customers is through social media, where they spend most of their time

 

By Aoko Magero – Content strategist