GOSO

By: Ryan Riley Marketing Strategy Manager for GOSO. Ryan provides analytical data and departmental support for GOSO. Ryan is an experienced writer and blogs for GOSO, BOALT and other sites.

According to SheSpeaks Second Annual Media Study the number of U.S. women with at least one profile on a social networking site grew from 58% in 2008 to 86% in 2009. Of the 86% of women on a social networking 72% log in daily. In 2008 only 53% of women logged in daily.

The biggest number is that half of those active in social media say that social networking sites influence their shopping habits and 40% have used a coupon code.

Here are more of the studies findings:

Site Popularity:

• Facebook saw an increase in popularity from 42% in 2008 to 87% in 2009. With 95% of all those active in social media claiming a profile on Facebook. That’s an increase from 65% in 2008.
• MySpace dropped by 33% to 42% of women active in social networking. However, the site remains popular with women between 18-24.
  Twitter was added to the study just this year with 38% of particpants active on Twitter.
  LinkedIn also saw an increase from 17% in 2008 to 22% in 2009.

Results Based on Age:

• Women under 30 saw an increase of social networking participation from 86% in 2008 to 95% in 2009.
• The largest increase was with women over 50, which saw a 126% increase in usage from 31% in 2008 to 70% in 2009.

Popularity of Online Activities:

• Watching Videos Online
• Commenting on blogs
• Posting product reviews
  

Effectiveness of Social Networking Ads:

The percent of women that click on advertising on social networking pages increased from 2% in 2008 to 9% in 2009 and the percent of women that ignore ads on their pages decreased from 26% to 21%.

Purchasing Influence:

The study found that the leading influence in whether a women buys a product is and email from a friend or family member, however, this method saw a decrease of 7% from 2008. The only two methods to increase from 2008 were:

• “A blog post I read,” which increased from 27% to 53%
• “Information obtained on a social networking site,” which increased from 27% to 43%.

The study was compiled based on responses from 1,500 SheSpeaks members.