A new report has shed light into how Australian consumers and businesses are using social at the halfway mark of 2016.

Read on for the key takeaways.

Face time

The Sensis Social Media Report 2016 surveyed 1100 Australian businesses and 800 Australian consumers.

Unsurprisingly Facebook is still king, and used by 95% of respondents. 

The average Aussie Facebooker checks in 32 times a week, with an average visit time of 24 minutes. That's 12.5 hours a week – a rise of four hours since 2015.

Most users cite keeping in contact with family and friends as the main appeal of the social network.

Instagram

Coming in second is Instagram (31%), this figure has doubled since 2013. Respondents say that visual content, ease of use, and privacy features are Instagram's main draw cards.

Rounding out the top four are LinkedIn (24%) and Twitter (19%).

Diverse devices

Australians now own, on average, three internet-enabled devices.

Over 76% of Aussies own a smartphone, making it the most popular connected device – ahead of laptops (70%), tablets (53%) and desktop computers (54%).

Internet-enabled TVs are increasingly popular, with almost a third of respondents owning one.

Brand lessons

When it comes to brands advertising on social, 27% of respondents have no problem with sponsored posts from businesses they follow, and over one third were happy to see ads.

Close to half (43%) occasionally clicked on ads to find out more information.

Significantly, 41% of respondents will inspect a brand's social media presence before making an online purchase, and 31% use online ratings and reviews to judge a brand.

Trust game

Consumers are more likely to trust brands that interact with customers in a positive way on social, and those that post engaging and relevant content. 

And the thing most likely to turn consumers off? Excessive content, so post with caution.

To find out more visit sensis.com.au.