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Posts Tagged ‘demographics’

Time to Climb on the Social Media Express

If you believe in the adage “Numbers don’t lie”, then it would be fair to say that sooner or later everyone is going to be on the social media express.

According to a study by Experian Simmons, 91% of online U.S. adults visit a social networking service (social or professional networking sites, photo or video sharing sites, online forums or message boards, social tagging or bookmarking) in the past month. In terms of numbers, that’s 129 million people, or 41.3% of the total population.

That is certainly impressive but what is even more interesting, although not terribly surprising, is that 98% of online 18-to 24 year-olds use social networks each month.

And if you thought social network were just for younger people, consider this: the number of online people over the age of 65-years-old using social networks has jumped to 73% from 49% in the past two years.

So what does this mean for brands, organizations and digital marketers? If you haven’t already embraced social media, it would probably be a good idea to do so quickly. It has become obvious that social media not only not a fad but it has gone from new and interesting to mainstream in about five years, which is astounding.

 

Another interesting part of the Experian Simmons study was a look at where people go after visiting social networking or forum-categorized service. Other social network and forum sites topped the list (19%), followed by search engines (16%), multi-media (9%), shopping and classifieds (7%), email services (6%) and games (5%).

 

Some other interesting facts from the study include that:

- 46% of all online adults use social media to communicate with friends, up from 32% in 2009.
- 27% say they use social media to stay in touch with their siblings, up from 15% in 2009.
- 18% use social media to stay in touch with their children, up from just 6% of online adults in 2009
- 14% of adult children use social media to communicate with their parents, up from 5% in 2009.

 

 

 

By Mark Evans - October 11th, 2011 - 2 Comments »
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Posted in Social Media

Social Media and Older Demographics

Not that long ago, social media was seen as a young person’s game – a notion perpetuated by Facebook’s emergence into the mainstream from its roots as a social network used by university students.

The new reality, however, is that social is no longer a young person’s game. In fact, it’s becoming a landscape dominated by older users. According to a recent study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, 52% of social networking users are 35+, compared with 34% in 2008.

Users in the 50-to- 65-year-old demographic jumped to 20% from 9%, while users who are more than 65-years-old (aka grandparents) tripled to 6% from 2%. (The chart below shows the breakdown between 2010 and 2008)

So what does this mean to social media?

The biggest impact will be on social media marketing because older people have more disposable income than younger people. We’re talking about Baby Boomers in the latter stages of their careers whose incomes have risen along their experience. As well, Baby Boomers in the U.S. are slated to inherit $8.4-trillion.

For marketers, this is a huge market with lots of money to spend on real estate, travel, electronics, luxury goods, clothing, dining, etc. For companies looking to drive sales, the target audience should be people who are more than 50-years-old because they have lots of dough to spend.

For social media, it should mean that marketing and advertising dollars will star to flow into places with a lot of older users such as Facebook. For anyone looking to get a better handle on Facebook’s revenue growth and its IPO prospects, Pew’s study offers a lot of food for thought.

In many respects, the demographic shift that people have been talking about in the last couple of years will start assume more importance as advertisers move more of their overall spending online and, in the process, allocate more to social networks.

Money talks, and so do demographics. The Pew study thrusts both issues into the spotlight and, as important, sets the stage for some serious financial and economic consequences.

By Mark Evans - June 24th, 2011 - 4 Comments »
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Posted in Social Media

Older People Will Change Social Networks

Anyone who suggests that social networks are dominated by young people will slowly, but surely, discover this is no longer the case.

According to a recent Pew Internet study, the number of online users over 50-years-old using social neworks nearly doubled to 42% in May 2010 from 22% in April 2009, while social networking usage in the 50-to-64-year-old demographic soared 88% to 47% from 25%. Meanwhile, social networking use among users ages 18-29 grew by 13%—from 76% to 86%.

“Young adults continue to be the heaviest users of social media, but their growth pales in comparison with recent gains made by older users,” said Mary Madden, a senior research specialist and author of the report.

“Email is still the primary way that older users maintain contact with friends, families and colleagues, but many older users now rely on social network platforms to help manage their daily communications.”

While the numbers suggest the demographics of social networks are starting to even out, a far more interesting angle is how the growing number of “seasoned” social network users will change how social networks operate and, as important, how advertisers and marketers approach social networks.

One of the changes that might happen is how social networks attract and retain older users. Rather than touting new features, some social networks may target older demographics by putting the spotlight on straightforward benefits.

There may also be an opportunity for third-party service providers to offer services that are strong on usability and user-friendliness as opposed to having lots of frills. For example, a new wave of services could tap Twitter’s API to create Twitter Lite.

For marketers, the increased presence of 50+ social networking users means more people with disposable income. This could boost the attractiveness of social networks for advertisers looking to reach consumers in different ways.

Another offshoot could see more companies climb on the social media bandwagon because senior executives will no longer be able to claim that social networks are only for young people.

The “greying” of social networks is a natural part of how the market is evolving. There is little doubt it will have a major impact on how companies and advertisers operate and make money.

By Mark Evans - August 31st, 2010 - 3 Comments »
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Posted in Social Media

Do Teenagers Really Not Use Twitter?

The blogosphere is all abuzz in the wake of a Morgan Stanley report written by a 15-year-old intern, Matthew Robson, that suggests, among other things, that “teenagers do not use Twitter” because they would rather use their credits sending text messages to friends.

The report caught the attention and imagination of a large number of news organizations, which reacted like Robson had finally revealed the long-sought insight into how teenagers use technology. But as Mashable’s Ben Parr succinctly noted the flaw in Robson’s well-written report is it’s based on anecdotal evidence as opposed to facts.

“While it’s easy to get swept up in the fact that a 15 year old wrote such a thoughtful report, we cannot lose sight that this is one analysis, and it is one without hard facts to back it up,” Parr wrote.

In Sysomos’ recently published “Inside Twitter” report, one of the areas we explored was the demographic make-up of Twitter users. We discovered that of the 0.7% of users who disclosed their age within a Twitter profile, 65% of them are under 25-years-old. (Note: Sysomos indexed 11.4 million Twitter profiles to create the report)

Twitter Age
Robson’s contention that teenagers aren’t using Twitter may, in fact, be true. But it is clearly difficult to accurately assess the demographic make-up of Twitter users without major statistics. Until this kind of information can be determined, Sysomos’ Inside Twitter report provides one of the best snapshots of Twitter demographics.

For more thoughts on Robson’s report, check out TechCrunch had a 16-year-old, Daniel Brusilovsky, write a post on why teenagers aren’t using Twitter. He contends teenagers prefer Facebook because it’s a closed network, which makes them feel it’s safer than Twitter. He also says Twitter is more expensive than Facebook.

By Mark Evans - July 13th, 2009 - 2 Comments »
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Posted in Social Media, Technology

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