As social media matures, it is expanding and fragmenting,
following in the footsteps of television.
And each network is now becoming more distinct in terms of the audience
that it attracts. So depending upon who
you are trying to reach, a variety of new options are available.
According to a recent study by Pingdom, males like tech-oriented
sites like Slashdot, Hacker News and Stack Overflow, while females like
Pinterest, Goodreads and Blogger. Marketers who want to reach 25-34 year-olds
should consider Hi5, while those seeking 35-44 year-olds might want to check
out Quora.And, while the estimated age of the average social media user is under 37, LinkedIn’s average user is 44 and Facebook’s is 50! (Sullivan, 2012)
That surprises me. How about you?
Sullivan, L. (2012, August 27). Social Media Users’ Age, Gender Impact Site
Choices. mediapost.com. Retrieved
August 23 , from http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/181368/social-media-users-age-gender-impact-site-choice.html
2 comments:
I can understand that LinkedIn's average is 44 (above the normal average) because this is a recruiting or network site, and people aged 40-55 are actively looking for second careers in this recession.
But for Facebook, 50 as an average seems high. I would like to know the socio-economic level of Facebook users. Then if the average is 50, the Baby Boomers, it might mean this is a great opportunity for advertising for this demographic.
Social media conversations are robust at my company, therefore, the data doesn't surprise me. If I didn't have exposure to conversations regarding social media, then yes perhaps it would be surprising that the average facebook user is 50. Coincidentally, my Dad and step-mom just retired and signed up for Facebook. The funniest thing is my step-mom changed her named to Lana Turnstile!! That being said, society is getting younger and younger...50 is the new 40, 40 is the new 30, so overall age is starting to become blurred.
The average Linkedin age isn't surprising, as Ronit said, because people are looking for second jobs/careers. Overall, the sight seems to be for slightly older professionals. I originally joined Facebook to expose the personal side of me that wasn't evident at work. I've always kept business and personal completely separate. Facebook allows people to see another side of me, which has worked very well for me. Now, going onto Facebook has become a habit. I'm also on LinkedIn, Pinterest, FourSquare, Goodreads, and Twitter.
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