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Nielsen Research released their brand new Social Media Report today with the latest data about exactly how much time people are spending on social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter… and which sites they prefer.
Consumers are spending 20 percent of their personal computer time on social networks, and 30 percent of their total time online on social networks via their mobile devices. I believe it. My daughter Ashley seems to live on Facebook, and my daughter Alyssa can’t get enough of Pinterest!
Yes, Facebook still reigns as the most popular social network site, with Twitter gaining popularity, and Pinterest exploding in growth (a year-over-year increase of 1,047%, compared to Facebooks 4% decrease).
Mobile access of social media is increasing the most rapidly, with a growing number of people using their smartphones and tablets to access social media sites. 46 percent of social media users say they use their smartphone to access social media, and 16 percent say they use social media on their tablet. That’s the case with my girls; they both get their social network fix via apps on their smartphones.
The rise of mobile activity has increased the amount of time that people spend on the internet. Mobile web browsing rose 22% from July 2011 to July 2012. Mobile App time rose 120% during that same period.
So what are some of the ramifications of social media permeation?
- As mentioned in our brand new Youth Culture Window article about teen cell phone use/abuse, texting has actually dipped slightly, most likely because a majority of young people have smartphones and now they can communicate via mobile social networking.
- As social media mania grows more mobile, the time young people spend per day on the internet is increasing. Could it eventually surpass the time they are spending watching TV? (Despite what some think, it hasn’t yet)
- Could this affect attention spans even more? (I touched on this question last week when I blogged about Americans multi-tasking watching TV)
- Are careers in graphic design, art and web design going to become more in demand?
- Will my daughter still want to go kayaking with me when she becomes more addicted to Pinterest!!!
What about you? What ramifications do you predict from this social media explosion?
Posted in Entertainment Media, Internet, TV, Youth Culture | | Leave A Comment
Great post. I wonder about this too. Our online world verses offline world. Maybe we should be asking how can we do more online youth ministry? Challenge students to be the same online as well as offline is definitely something to challenge them with because people can still be reached and influenced by what you believe when you do a status update. But there needs to be some sort of healthy balance to have in all of it. I will hafta ponder this.