Did you know that the average Twitter user is a 28 year-old female who speaks English, owns an iPhone and has a fondness for the color purple? Is that statistic likely to change your life? I certainly hope not. However, it could have a real influence over the way you approach content creation and curation on the network, given that many of your personas could be 20-something women. The best marketers never stop learning and researching, which is why I’ve compiled 31 of the most recent, shocking and fascinating statistics on social media usage and behavior patterns among American consumers.

The best inbound marketers realize their social media strategy can’t be stagnant. What earned shares and likes on Facebook a year ago won’t fly anymore since the adoption of Facebook time line. While it might have been wisest to focus your efforts towards Twitter and Facebook a few months ago, the rising prevalence of Pinterest is a leading source of referral traffic for many B2C businesses.

From a purely selfish standpoint, if you’re hoping to gain exposure and followers on Twitter, Tweeting stats can be a wise maneuver. HubSpot’s social media scientist Dan Zarella has found that the less you talk about yourself, the more like you are to gain followers and engagement. Whether you’re in it to gain a few dozen social media followers or adjust your inbound marketing strategy, we’ve compiled the most shocking and recent research from sources we trust. Read it and Tweet:

Social Behavior

1. The average time spent using social media is increasing, while email is largely decreasing.(via ComScore) //

2. 85% of Internet users have Facebook accounts and 49% are on Twitter. (via HubSpot)

3. Over 50% of Consumers consider Facebook friends a trusted source of information. (via Technorati) //

4. 80% of people prefer to get coupons, promos, and discounts from brands in social media.(via HubSpot) //

5. Social Media Networks Reach Over 50% of Americans. (via We Are Social) //

6. Social networking accounts for 19% of all time spent online. (via ComScore) //

7. 55 percent of Americans ages 45-54 have a social media profile. (via Edison Research)

Social Media for Business

8. The Number of Americans Following a Brand in Social Media Has Doubled Since 2010.(via Edison Research) //

9. Social Media Has a 100% Higher Lead-to-Close Rate than Outbound Marketing. (via HubSpot) //

Pinterest

10. The best time to pin during the day is between 2 PM and 4 PM EST. (via Pinerly) //

11. Pinterest retains and engages 2-3 times more efficiently than Twitter at a similar time in their history. (via RJ Metrics) //

12. 80% of Pinterest’s users are female. (via Comscore) //

13. Unique Visitors to Pinterest Increased by 155% in January 2012.(via Compete) //

14. Pinterest Users Spend Just 0.6% of Their Time On the Network Commenting. (via Repinly) //

15. Food and Drink is the Most Popular Category on Pinterest at 11.9% of all pins. (via Repinly) //

Facebook

16. Over 90% of Retail Companies Have Acquired a Customer Through Facebook.(via HubSpot)

17. Brands are acquiring Facebook fans at an average rate of 9% per month.(viaeFrontier)

18. 77% of B2C Companies Have Acquired a Customer Through Facebook. (via HubSpot)

19. Auto-Posting to Facebook Decreases Likes and Comments by 70%.(via Digital Buzz Blog)

20. 80% of US Social Media Users Prefer to Connect With Brands Through Facebook. (via HubSpot) //

21. 23% of Facebook users check their account five or more times each day. (via Socialnomics) //

22. 20% of Facebook users have purchased something because of ads or comments they saw there. (via Ipsos) //

23. The US has over 157 million Facebook users.(via Fortunecate It)

24. 19% of Facebook Users Registered in the Last 12 Months. (via Socialnomics)

25. Facebook accounts for 1 in 7 minutes spent online. (via Comscore) //

26. Brands Have Seen a 46% Increase in Engagement Since Timeline for Business.(via Simply Measured) //

27. 47%  say Facebook has the greatest impact on purchase behavior, compared to just 24 percent in 2011. (via Edison Research) //

Twitter

28. The typical Twitter user is a 28 year-old English-speaking woman with 208 followers and an iPhone. (via Beevolve) //

29. 34% of marketers have generated leads using Twitter, and 20% have closed deals. (via Mindjumpers)

30. 76%  of Twitter users now post status updates, compared to just 47% in 2010. (via Edison Research)//

31. 67% of Twitter users are more likely to buy brands that they follow. (via iModerate) //