Facts on Social Media

If you are a devoted follower of Web 2.0, you might like to learn some of the most interesting facts on social media.

Although the terms "social media" and "social networking" are used interchangeably, there are subtle differences between these two forms of online communication. While social networking provides a network for connecting with online and "real life" friends, social media takes this one step further by providing a platform for broadcasting information. This may involve the use of video, music and photos. All of these social media include a whole range of specific terminology.

According to Friendster Vice President of Sales Aaron Barnes, in 2006, 350 million dollars was spent on social media marketing. Barnes estimates that this figure will rise to 350 million dollars by 2011. These interesting facts on social media might inspire corporations and their marketers to wonder if there is a justifiable return on their investment.

Social media analyst Charles Heflin has some insightful views on this subject. In order for social media to be profitable, the marketer must gain the reader's trust by providing information that is simultaneously enlightening, informative, and, if possible, entertaining. However, the buck does not stop with providing information. Successful users of social media know how to engage their visitors in online interaction. Excessive use of keywords, as well as link farms can actually get your site penalized by Google.

According to Comscore, based on the number of unique worldwide visitors, these are the top social media sites of 2008.

• Blogger:222 million visitors
• Facebook:200 million visitors
• MySpace: 126 million visitors
• Wordpress: 114 million visitors
• Windows Live Spaces: 87 million visitors
• Yahoo Geocities: 69 million
• Flickr: 64 million visitors
• hi5: 58 million visitors
• Orkut: 46 million visitors
• *Six Apart: 46 million visitors
• Baidu Space: 40 million visitors
• Friendster: 31 million visitors
• 56.com: 29 million visitors
• Webs.com: 24 million visitors
• Bebo: 24 million visitors
• Scribd: 23 million visitors
• Lycos Tripod: 23 million visitors
• Tagged: 22 million visitors
• imeem: 22 million visitors
• Netlog: 21 million visitors

At this point, you might be wondering how social media participation compares to other forms of online interaction. According to a March, 2009 report from Nielsen Online, social networks and blogs are currently the fourth most popular form of online communication. In fact, social media participation is actually three percent more popular than personal email.

Facebook is a site that incorporates aspects of social networking and social media. While some people use it to connect with their friends, others like to post photos and videos in their profiles, and share them with friends. While some Facebook members do this for personal reasons, others use it as a marketing tool. For example, a real estate agent might show photos of a home that he or she is selling, or an author might show a book trailer video of an upcoming book.

Although Facebook was originally designed as a place for college alumni to connect with old friends, according to a March 26, 2009 article in Wired Magazine, women over 55 are the fastest growing demographic on Facebook.

According to Mark Zuckerberg, if Facebook was a country, it would be the eighth largest nation in the world. Apparently, 150 million people use Facebook in 35 different languages in 170 countries. Considering that Facebook is just one form of social media, these facts on social media imply that it is perhaps one of the most powerful tools for marketing and communication.

• Safe Facebook Applications
• How Do I Make a Podcast
• Blogging the Bible

• Facebook Login Problems
• Facebook Sign In
• Free Lesbian Chat Rooms
• Best Facebook Proxy Sites
• Funny Facebook Status

• How the News Views Online Social Networks
• Misuse of Podcasting
• Category:About Social Networking