Digital Advertising Growth Surges In South Africa As Internet And Social Media Usage Expands

Digital advertising is an essential tool for any South African company that wants to consistently reach its target market.

This has only increased with the rise of internet access and usage in South Africa over the past few years.

• Click here to contact the BusinessTech marketing team.

According to the Digital 2025 Report for South Africa from DataReportal, the number of internet users in the country had reached 50.8 million, equal to 78.0% of the total population at the time.

Many of these users accessed the internet via mobile connections, and the report estimated that there were around 26.7 million active social media users.

The report also provided estimates for specific sites, including:

• YouTube – 25.3 million users
• Facebook – 26.7 million users
• LinkedIn – 15 million users

This is notable as it means that social media users make up over a third of South Africa’s population, a figure that will continue to grow in the coming years.

Digital advertising trusted

South Africans are not only using the Internet to surf their favourite social media pages.

According to the 2025 Digital Marketing Report, most South African professionals use and trust online sources when looking for information on services and products.

The report, based on a survey of 1,579 South African professionals, business owners, managers, and executives, found that 77% of respondents favoured online articles and reviews for information, while 49% trusted YouTube videos and Google search ads.

Additionally, 46% trusted email newsletters and 42% trusted social media adverts.

These results highlight how effective online advertising can be for companies, as a well-strategised digital marketing campaign can yield considerable results.

This is especially notable given the number of internet and social media users South Africa now boasts – a figure that will continue to grow throughout 2026 and beyond.

Effective advertising

South African companies that want to reach their target audience, therefore, need to make full use of digital advertising.

However, finding the right platform for such advertising can be difficult – and this is where BusinessTech comes in.

As South Africa’s largest business news website, it is the best place for digital advertising due to its influential audience and trusted reputation.

The BusinessTech marketing team understands the modern advertising landscape and has refined its marketing packages to reflect this, guaranteeing every company walks away satisfied with their results.

BusinessTech offers everything from sponsored articles and videos to display banners and homepage takeovers.

Our marketing team will handle every part of the process, including writing and designing content, running the campaign, and even providing a results report.

Thanks to this thoroughness, companies that advertise on BusinessTech enjoy unmatched ROI.

Click here to contact the BusinessTech marketing team.