THE PRACTITIONER

Today, the strength of online social networking is undeniable. Facebook alone has amassed more than 300 million users, and according to the site, 50 percent of active users log in at least once daily. In fact, older generations of people are now recognizing the power of social networking, which has propelled the over 35 age group to be Facebook’s fastest growing demographic. MySpace continues to have a large user base, and LinkedIn and Twitter are growing rapidly.  With all of these people flocking to social networks, what patterns have formed, and how can this be used for social media marketing?

In March,I blogged that although word-of-mouth input from colleagues and associates is the most impactful information source when it comes to decision making, the growing presence and proliferation of social networking will eventually blur the line between our virtual peers and our trusted real-life connections.  The morphing of online and offline peers will make social media marketing an invaluable and essential tool for companies.

Recent Nielsen data confirms people’s online behavior mirrors their real-life interactions, as social network users come together in groups of similar economic, educational, racial, and geographic backgrounds. MySpace skews to a younger demographic than Facebook; 77 percent of MySpace users are under 45 years old compared to 68 percent of those on Facebook. Only 6.8 percent of MySpace users are over 55 years of age.

Economically, Nielsen found that 23 percent of Facebook users earn more than $100,000 annually, while 28 percent earn less than $50,000. Those figures differ significantly from MySpace, where only 16 percent of users earn more than $100,000 and 37 percent take home less than $50,000.  LinkedIn is used by an even more affluent user base, with 38 percent of LinkedIn users having an income greater than $100,000, which is to be expected since the site connects users with professional associates and colleagues.

The geographical data reveals more of the same. Facebook is more commonly used by people who live in upscale, suburban neighborhoods, while MySpace is more prevalent in middle-class, blue collar areas. While the economic profiles of users of both networking services would tend to indicate that Facebook users would reside in more affluent neighborhoods, the data further illustrates that birds-of-a-feather flock together online as they do in the physical world.

Research from Harvard indicates a racial divide on Facebook as well. The Harvard study found that white and black students tended to self-segregate, while multiracial students had more, mixed groups of friends. The study found that many times, multiracial students provided the only link between students of different racial groups.

So what does this all mean to companies that wish to communicate and market online using social networks? It’s a clear indication that online marketing and communications need to be done in a similar manner as traditional outreach. It is critical that companies spend time researching their target demographics and determine where those people congregate online.

Marketers and communicators need to delve deep into the buying habits of their customers, by economic, educational, racial, and geographic background to ensure that their social media efforts are effective.  It is a waste of time and resources for companies to engage social media tactics to communicate with targets if they aren’t reaching them.