Social media isn’t just for selfies and food pics anymore—it’s the driving force behind businesses making serious money. In the world of social media-based companies, entrepreneurs can take advantage of platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook to build their brands and sell products, or build a business by doing promotions for other businesses.
What started as a way to connect with friends has evolved into a global marketplace, and these businesses are growing faster than ever. That’s why the team at Indexsy, a digital marketing firm specializing in SEO, conducted a study to reveal exactly which cities are becoming the hubs for social media-based businesses.
The study used three factors to calculate the final social media business score: the number of social media-based businesses in a city, their year-over-year growth rate, and the number of influencers with over 100k followers in each city. After giving each factor a weighting, they calculated the final scores.
Table 1: The Top Ten Cities For Influencers Worldwide
| Rank | City | Country | Number of Social Media-Based Businesses (2023) | Year-over-Year Growth Rate (%) | Influencer Count (Top-tier Influencers) | Social Media Business (SMB) Score |
| 1 | Los Angeles, CA | USA | 25,000 | 20% | 14,500 | 93.33 |
| 2 | New York City, NY | USA | 28,000 | 15% | 15,000 | 87.50 |
| 3 | São Paulo | Brazil | 20,000 | 15% | 8,800 | 56.67 |
| 4 | London | UK | 20,000 | 12% | 11,500 | 56.40 |
| 5 | Paris | France | 18,500 | 13% | 10,200 | 52.75 |
| 6 | San Francisco, CA | USA | 12,500 | 18% | 9,200 | 51.91 |
| 7 | Beijing | China | 18,000 | 14% | 9,000 | 51.15 |
| 8 | Tokyo | Japan | 22,000 | 10% | 10,000 | 50.94 |
| 9 | Mexico City | Mexico | 18,000 | 14% | 8,000 | 48.47 |
| 10 | Dubai | UAE | 13,000 | 18% | 7,500 | 48.24 |
Los Angeles
Los Angeles was named the top city that’s becoming a hub for social media businesses. It had an overall score of 93.33. The city had the second-highest number of social media-based businesses (25,000) and top-tier influencers (14,500), and it had the highest year-over-year growth rate (20%). This shows that social media businesses are growing very successfully in LA.
One key factor in this growth is likely LA’s pre-existing celebrity culture and infrastructure. There are already expert talent managers, brand partner specialists, and many more professionals who can help expand the business of a social media influencer in LA.
New York City
New York City was the second city in the top ten, with an overall score of 87.50. It actually had a higher number of businesses (28,000) and top-tier influencers (15,000) than LA, but businesses grew 5% less in New York (a total of 15%), suggesting that the city was already an established social media business hub.
New York is slowly becoming more popular with influencers. Content with ‘New York’ or ‘NYC’ in the title or description tends to get more views on average, and many big brands’ flagship stores are located in NYC, which makes it easier to arrange brand partnership deals.
São Paulo
São Paulo is arguably Brazil’s most important city economically, having the largest urban economy in Latin America. It came third on the table with an overall score of 56.67. Though it had the third-lowest number of top-tier influencers (8,800), it had 20,000 social media-based businesses, the same amount as London. These businesses grew 15% year-on-year, equalling New York’s growth rate, showing how much scope there is for social media businesses to thrive in São Paulo.
Social media influence is huge in Brazil; the number of Brazilians with over 10,000 followers on social media is higher than the number of dentists and engineers. Just under 50% of Brazilians said in 2022 that they had bought a product because a social media influencer recommended it to them.
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Credit
If you choose to use this information, please credit us with a link to the Indexy website (https://indexsy.com/). This will help us continue to provide you with quality content.
About
Indexsy is a digital marketing firm specializing in search engine optimization and innovative marketing strategies. Over the past decade, they have built a portfolio of over 50 online businesses, assisting clients ranging from small enterprises to Fortune 100 companies in enhancing their online presence. Founded by Jacky Chou, Indexsy emphasizes a results-driven approach, focusing on maximizing return on investment for their clients. Their services include SEO consulting, content marketing, and digital asset management, all aimed at boosting organic traffic and improving search engine rankings.
Sources
Sao Paulo is the biggest Latin American economy: Ranking De Ciudades Latinoamericanas Para La Atracción De Inversiones.
Social media statistics in Brazil: The Brazilian Report.
Methodology
| Column | Description | Source |
| City | Cities with robust startup ecosystems, as identified by resources like Startup Genome, were prioritized. These locations often correlate with strong digital innovation and business ecosystems conducive to social media entrepreneurship. Cities from multiple continents (North America, Asia, Europe, South America, and Australia) were included to ensure a global representation. | https://startupgenome.com/ |
| Number of Social Media-Based Businesses (2023) | Including e-commerce platforms, content creation agencies, and personal brands utilizing platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. | https://collabstr.com/2023-influencer-marketing-report |
| Year-over-Year Growth Rate (%) | This reflects the expansion of these business types due to increased digital adoption post-pandemic. | https://influencity.com/resources/studies/the-largest-influencer-study-of-the-united-states-2023/ |
| Influencer Count (Top-tier Influencers) | The number of top-tier influencers with 100K+ followers, based on influencer marketing studies and regional data analysis. | https://influencity.com/resources/studies/the-largest-influencer-study-of-the-united-states-2023/ |
Calculation: Prior to ranking, metrics were normalized using a min-max scale to ensure comparability across metrics with different scales.
Social Media Business (SMB) Score: The composite score consists of these metrics:
– Number of Social Media-Based Businesses (weight=0.4)
– Year-over-Year Growth Rate (weight=0.3)
– Influencer Count (weight=0.3)
Formula: SMB Score=(0.4×Normalized Business Count)+(0.3×Normalized Growth Rate)+(0.3×Normalized Influencer Count)
Timeframe: 2023
