Social networking now reaches most internet users in the US and has become an integral part of their lives. Thanks to the rapid growth of Facebook, updating status, posting comments and sharing links with friends have become routine activities for millions of people.
eMarketer estimates nearly 150 million US web users will use social networks via any device at least monthly this year, bringing the reach of such sites to 63.7% of the online population. But the days of double-digit growth in users are over as social networking reaches a saturation point. By 2013, 164.2 million Americans will use social networks, or 67% of internet users.
“With fewer new users signing up, social network users will be more sophisticated and discerning about the people and brands they want to engage with,” said Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer principal analyst and author of the new report, “US Social Network Usage: 2011 Demographic and Behavioral Trends.”
Even as the social network audience has broadened to include a significant number of people from the Generation X, boomer and senior age segments, the youngest age groups are still the most represented, active and engaged. The enormous usage increases in some older age groups over the past two years will be less pronounced in the coming years.
Still, more than half of internet users ages 45 to 64 and over four out of five 12- to- 34-year-old online users will be regular social network users in 2011. The highest penetration level of all age groups will remain in the 18-to-24 age group, where 90% of internet users will use social networks this year.
“In 2011, social networks will need to cement their relationships with their users, particularly people ages 35 and older, in order to keep them engaged,” said Williamson. “Marketers and media companies can contribute to this effort by creating compelling user experiences that make people want to stay connected to social networks so they can gain access to experiences, deals or content they may not be able to find anywhere else.”
The full report, “US Social Network Usage: 2011 Demographic and Behavioral Trends,” also answers these key questions:
- How many people in the US use social networks?
- Which age groups are most active and engaged?
- How does social network usage impact email?
- How will mobile social network usage grow and change?
COMMENTARY: This eMarketer collaborates what I have been saying about the U.S. and international social media usage and pentration reaching the saturation point in several of my blog posts:
- September 5, 2010 titled, "Facebook's Top Ten Markets For New Members"
- February 5, 2011 titled, "Facebook Will Capture 67% Of Global Social Media Revenues In 2011, But Can It Reach 1 Billion Members?"
- March 20, 2011 titled, "Facebook's Ad-Supported Revenue Model Reaches A Critical Inflection Point As The No Of Users and Ad Revenues Slow". Facebook's growth will not depend on international users.
It is obvious that Facebook has to look to overseas markets in order to continue growing in number of users, and most importantly, ad revenues. In the last article above, I really get into how Facebook's ad-supported revenue model has reached an inflection point, which could limits ability to grow advertising revenues. Well worth reading.
Courtesy of an article dated March 18, 2011 appearing in eMarketer
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