Who Uses Social Networking More? Men or Women?

61% Of ONLINE ADULTS access their emails on a typical day (Source: Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project surveys: February 2005, August 2006, May 2008, April 2009, May 2010, and May 2011.) These same online adults use social networking 43% of the time. Only search engine usage is higher with online adults according to Pew Research--59% of the time.
“Search and email still top the list of most popular online activities,” available at:
http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2011/Search-and-email.aspx

Yet the core, influential users of social networking sites are women 18-29 with 89% of them using social networking sites an average of 69% of the time each day. It doesn't matter if those users live in rural, suburban or urban areas, the usage level is the same. This level of social networking is not defined by race, ethnicity, household income nor education level, the common denominator is access to the internet, being a woman of age 18-29.

Since 2009 women have outnumbered men in their use of social networking sites. As of May 2011, 7 out of 10 women use social networking sites compared to 6 in 10 men. This data mirrors original marketing data that shows women are the decision makers in purchasing behavior in the household. Armed with this knowledge, how does a brand market a product successfully using social networking?


The demo most likely to be impacted is going to be the 18-29 female, and knowing what she needs and wants to enhance her life is the marketing driver. Typically, this demo likes going to clubs and parties on the weekends, attends music concerts, is concerned about outward appearance, having a sustainable income, and doesn’t feel committed to any particular job. They know there are other options, so they are not upset with corporate change. This demo will quickly share their experiences in social media outlets rating products and services. They ‘check-in’ with photo uploads from their mobile devices sharing where they are and whether the food or service is good. Their opinions matter.


For more on this report and others, visit the Pew Internet Research site, they have good information there. www.pewinternet.org