Social Networking – How Do YOU Stack Up?

Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn – What Do They Say About YOU?

Social networks – Yep: believe it or not, people study what people are doing on Social Networks.

And you can just imagine: when they study something, they find results and then work to attach meaning to them.

Such is the case of the Social Network Survey that Anderson Analytics produced, as reported in Advertising Age.

You've been analyzed, your likely interests prodded, your buying habits studied, and your media consumption ranked.

For example: They ask if you use Twitter. If YES (whoops, I DO), then you are more interested in SEX than the average Facebook, MySpace, or LinkedIn user.

If you like LinkedIn (I still haven't quite figured out how to make it work, other than asking people directly for help), then you're more likely to watch soap operas.

Is MySpace number 1 for you, then you probably don't like exercise.

Wow… all that from asking a few questions and tabulating the results?

Which Social Network You Favor Says A Lot About You

Did the information above surprise you?

The survey studied the demographics (WHAT a large number of people do) and the psychographics (WHY people do what they do) of social network users and those who don't use them.

Nearly 110 million Americans (60% of those online) use social networks (like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc). Users tend to spend a lot of time on these networks (have you ever looked up and it seemed like the clock FLEW by when you were on Facebook… then you understand how this can be true!).

The average social network user goes to the social sites five days a week, four times a day for a total of about one hour a day. (WOW!)

A SUPER-CONNECTED 9% stay logged in all day and are on constantly checking what's new.

Here is a quick overview which might interest you. And remember, this was conducted as background for advertisers, so they'd know where to concentrate their advertising dollars.

Facebook Users

40% are married, 80% are white, 6% are retired.

Facebook users skew a bit older and are likely to be "late adopters" of new technology (gosh, I'll have to point that out to my younger sister who recently joined!). Facebook users are extremely loyal, with 75% saying Facebook is their favorite site with another 50% having increased their time on the site recently.

Twitter Users

31% buy coffee online, 16% work part-time, and 43% could live without it.

Twitter users have lots of interest, but skew really high in all news categories, liking restaurants, sports, politics, personal finance, and religion. (Yep… sounds like my interests, all right…). They are more likely to buy books, movies, shoes, and cosmetics. They like pop culture with music, TV, and reading ranking high on their lists (I wonder if it counts that I read while watching TV?).

This group is also very entrepreneurial (right with that one too!). They use Twitter to promote their blogs ( you can find mine at http://bit.ly/24eYTO ) and they do business with it.

The group is not that attached to Twitter with 43% saying they could live without it (hey, maybe they haven't gotten into it as much as I have!).

MySpace Users

60% are single, 23% are students (Those numbers explain a LOT!).

I admit that the "noise" of MySpace keeps me away. Oh, sure… I used it to promote my daughter, Liz's, CD (http://myspace/LizSeymour) because people in music are all over MySpace.

But that doesn't mean I like it. Nor does it mean I actively recommend it for my clients and their marketing, because I DON'T.

It's not as business-friendly as Facebook, but as you see from the statistics, the markets aren't the same either.

Content in MySpace is mostly specific hobbies or photos of family and friends. The users are more likely to be Afro American (9%) or Hispanic (7%) than other social sites. And if you're looking for singles, clearly that number attracts attention.

LinkedIn Users

57% male, 12% seek info on gambling (I have NO idea where THAT came from!)

The highest income averages are here in LinkedIn but it may also be the hardest of the "social" venues to crack. The main reason stated (for business) for joining is MUCH higher here than for any other site, so networking for business, job searching, recruiting are all high on the list.

The users are more likely to be members of a gym, spa, yoga, and golf as well, reflecting both the business interest and the higher economic level.

Hey, I'm in it and use it, but don't feel any real "connection" to anyone in LinkedIn, the way I do with, say, Facebook.

And excluding video games, these folks own more electronics like TVs, iPods, DVRs, and Blue-ray players.

So… there you have it. Did you see yourself in any of these categories?

Interesting, if nothing else!

Best,

Charlie Seymour Jr
A Work At Home Dad since 1983, succeeding in this economy

PS:

You can find me here:

http://twitter.com/UltimateWAHDads

http://facebook.com/CharlesSeymourJr

http://www.linkedin.com/in/charlesseymourjr

http://myspace.com/LizSeymour

PPS: Do you have trouble writing? Turn Your Words Into Gold – Go Here To Learn More! NOW is the time to start.

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Social Networking: Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn

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