Social Media in Brazil - 2023 Stats & Platform Trends

With an internet penetration of more than 80% and mobile penetration of close to 100%, the internet market in brazil is relatively developed comparing with other regional peers. Hence, the use of social media is maturing in the country and even leading in the Latin American market.

The regulation of social media has been a highly debated topic among various groups in recent years, with bills such as the “Fake News Bill” remaining stalled in Congress for nearly two years. However, recent violent attacks on Brazil’s Congress and other government buildings have brought attention to the role of social media algorithms in these events, and may lead to increased pressure for the passing of regulations on content moderation and digital platforms in the near future.

The way people use social media changed dramatically during the pandemic, it becomes more than just connecting with friends and family or following fan page etc for most Brazilian. The pandemic has led to a significant shift towards social media for Brazilian retailers as the lockdown was imposed.

Beauty specialist retailers, in particular, have used WhatsApp as a platform to reach customers and enable direct payment, a trend known as social selling. Despite the lifting of quarantine restrictions, many retailers have continued to see strong growth in online sales, and as a result, they are turning to social media to remain relevant and offer customers a favorable online shopping experience.

Home and garden specialist retailers also saw a strong shift towards social media during the pandemic. Even retailers that were classified as essential businesses and were able to continue operating throughout the year saw strong growth in online sales. In response, retailers are turning to social media-oriented marketing strategies to increase their digital presence. In particular, the use of messaging app WhatsApp to establish and maintain close contact with customers formed a key element of the shift towards digital channels during the pandemic. This is likely to continue as many Brazilian consumers have a strong preference for social commerce and WhatsApp is the most commonly used messaging app among Brazilian consumers. Therefore, it is likely that the forecast period will see numerous players operating in home and garden specialist retailers increase their digital presence on social media platforms.