So what does this all mean? Manufacturers who still think the only ones using social are the 18-29 year olds should think again.You might be missing a golden opportunity to reach your target audience.
It means folks over 50 that are using social media (yes, even professional tradesmen and contractors) nearly doubled from 22% in April of 2009 to 42% in May of 2010 according to the Pew Research Center. That’s good news for manufacturers who are trying to reach the older set of professionals who typically own or manage contractors.
- One in Five (20%) online adults 50-64 say they use social network sites on a typical day. That’s up 10% over last year.
- Overall, 92% of those 50-64 send/read e-mail every day. 76% get news online.
- 52% of 50-64 adults are using social media on a regular basis.
| Social Media Trends, 2009-2010 | ||||
| % of online adults who use SNS or Twitter, 2009-2010 | ||||
| 2009 | 2010 | % Point Change, 2009-2010 | % Change, 2009-2010 | |
| Social Networking Use | ||||
| All adults | 46% | 61% | 15 | 33% |
| Age | ||||
| 18-29 | 76 | 86 | 10 | 13% |
| 30-49 | 48 | 61 | 13 | 27% |
| 50-64 | 25 | 47 | 22 | 88% |
| 65+ | 13 | 26 | 13 | 100% |
| Twitter/Status Update Use | ||||
| All adults | 11% | 17% | 6 | 55% |
| Age | ||||
| 18-29 | 20 | 27 | 7 | 35% |
| 30-49 | 11 | 16 | 5 | 45% |
| 50-64 | 5 | 11 | 6 | 120% |
| 65+ | 3 | 5 | 2 | - |
| Source: Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project, August 2010 | ||||
If you’re reading this, I may be preaching to the choir but I’m sure you can think of someone within your organization you could forward to and let them know older people use social too!
John Sonnhalter
Welcome to my blog, Tradesmen Insights. I'm the master of one trade, founder of a B-to-B marketing communications firm to companies that target tradesmen in construction, industrial and MRO markets.
