Social networking is becoming an increasingly mainstream activity. Contrary to media portrayals of digital interactions as isolating, active social networkers are more likely than others to have strong support networks.
Moving Into Mainstream
Nearly six in 10 online adults (59%) use social networking, an increase of 74% since 2008, according to the Pew Internet and American Life project (calculations by Research Alert). Social networking is growing fastest among adults over 35, nearly half of whom (48%) use social networks, more than double the 18% who did in 2008. In 2008, 68% of social network users were between the ages of 18 and 35; by 2010, more than half (52%) were 36 or older.
Who Uses Which Network
Women make up the majority of social network users (56%, up from 53% in 2008), with the exception of LinkedIn, which is used by more men than women. Facebook is by far the most widely used social network; 92% of social network users have Facebook accounts. Just under three in 10 (29%) are on MySpace, 18% are on LinkedIn, and 13% are on Twitter. Facebook and Twitter users are most actively engaged with the sites: 52% of Facebook users log on daily, as do 33% of Twitter users. Only 7% of MySpace users and 6% of LinkedIn users log on daily.
Women Lead Facebook
Women who are on Facebook post status updates more frequently than men do: 18% of women post once a day or more, compared to 11% of men. Almost a third of Facebook users ages 18-22 (31%) post status updates at least once a day.
Facebook users comment on other people’s status updates more frequently than they post their own. More than half (53%) of Facebook users comment on other users’ posts at least once a week, and 22% comment at least once a day, compared to 44% who post their own updates at least once a week, and 15% who post once a day or more.
Virtual And “Real-Life” Friends
The average Facebook user has 229 friends on the site; many of these are people with whom he or she might otherwise lose touch. Facebook users have met 93% of their Facebook friends in person, however. Four in 10 Facebook users (40%) have friended all of their closest “real-life” friends on the site, up from 29% who had done so in 2008.
In general, Facebook makes its users feel more socially connected and supported. People who visit Facebook several times daily have 9% more friends they consider their core confidants than other Internet users do. They’re also more likely than other Internet users to receive emotional support and/or tangible help (such as someone to take care of them when they’re sick), and to have people to spend time with.
Internet users (46%) and social networkers (45%) are more likely than non-Internet users (27%) to feel that most people can be trusted. Facebook users who visit the site several times a day are 43% more likely than other Internet users and three times more likely than non-Internet users to feel this way.
Twitter Users Are Highly Connected
Twitter users are more likely than users of other social media to log in via mobile devices, according to Compete. More than four in 10 Americans who use Twitter (43%) access the site through cell phones or smartphones and 9% through tablets, compared to 34% and 7%, respectively, of Facebook users and 9% and 4% of LinkedIn users (the study did not look at MySpace users). Pew finds an even higher proportion of Twitter users accessing the site via mobile: 54% of users with cell phones or smartphones access the site on them.
Although the numbers of people using Twitter are still relatively small, the site is growing fastest among the social networks studied by Pew. Twitter use among 25-34-year-olds doubled between November 2010 and May 2011 (from 9% to 19%). Twitter users and MySpace users are more racially and ethnically diverse than users of Facebook and LinkedIn.
Twitter users are much more active than overall adults in online social activities, according to GfK MRI: They’re 506% more likely to write blogs; 451% more likely to upload videos; and 314% more likely to post reviews or comments on blogs, message boards, and other forums. They’re also 209% more likely to be published writers and 269% more likely to own e-readers. Conversely, owners of e-readers are more likely than the average adult to be active on social networking sites in general, including Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
More than half of Twitter users who follow a brand (56%) and 47% of Facebook users who “like” a brand say they’re more likely to buy that brand’s products after signifying their allegiance. More than six in 10 (62% of Twitter users and 60% of Facebook users) say they’re more likely to visit the brand’s website; 59% of Twitter users and 55% of Facebook users are more likely to recommend the brand to others after following/liking it, according to Compete.
Consumers’ top reasons for following or liking brands are to learn about discounts and promotions and to get free stuff. Twitter users are more likely than Facebook users to followa brand because they want product updates, to stay informed about the company, to interact with the company, or purely for fun.
Sources: “Social Networking Sites and Our Lives,” June 16, 2011, and “13% of Online Adults Use Twitter,” June 1, 2011, Pew Internet and American Life Project, Lee Rainey, Director, and Aaron Smith, Senior Research Specialist, 1615 L St., NW, #700, Washington, DC 20036; 202-419-4500; info@pewinternet.org; www.pewinternet.org. Price: Available online at no charge.
“Four Things You Might Not Know About Twitter,” June 13, 2011, Compete Pulse, Compete Inc., Cynthia Stevens, Director of Marketing, 4 Copley Pl., #700, Boston, MA 02116; 617-933-5600, x5651; cstevens@compete.com; www.competeinc.com. Price: Available online at no charge: http://compete.com/newsletter/
“Survey of the American Consumer, Spring 2010,” GfK MRI, Anne Marie Kelly, SVP Marketing and Strategic Planning, 75 Ninth Ave., New York, NY 10011; 212-884-9204; Annemarie.kelly@gfkmri.com; www.gfkmri.com. Price: Contact for information.
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