(eyeball time: 2.5 minutes but you might read faster…)
btw, contact us for our free white paper “social networking 101” for further discussion on the topic
dea’s skinny on what’s happening:
no matter how you may personally feel about the recent flood of social networking sites, it would be impossible to ignore their impact on our society. in less than a decade, we have seen the rise and fall of these sites as technologies change. early entrants, like friendster, paved the way for behemoth networks like facebook. continuously evolving, we now see micro-anything mobile-everywhere sites to be of most value. twitter and tumblr are the new kids on the block; and, like their predecessors each is quickly learning what it means to create a “sustainable” business model.
it would be easy to dismiss the industry as over-saturated. yet, there is something to be said of the success of these sites. revenue models may not be public, but the buzz and adoption rates of these sites speak loud and clear. in a recent experian simmons report, social networks like facebook, twitter and myspace, are collectively rising in penetration with a 230 percent increase since 2007. over 43 percent of americans visit these sites more than once a day. additionally, it is worth noting the secondary ecosystems that have popped up as a result of these networking sites. companies like zynga, a social-gaming platform, have reaped the benefits of facebook’s community. open api technologies have become the key motivators in creating a marketplace of third-party applications.
the stakes:
the following is a brief breakdown of the biggest and most interesting social networks in the U.S. landscape:
current ranking: 1st in the u.s. » typical user: 18-34 y/o female with no children » avg. income: approximately + $60-$100K per year
YouTube
current ranking: 2nd in the u.s. » typical user: 18-34 y/o male or female with no children » avg. income: approximately + $100K per year
myspace
current ranking: 3rd in the u.s. » typical user: 18-34 y/o hispanic female with no kids» avg. income: less than $30k per year
current ranking: 4th in the u.s. » typical user: 18-34 y/o female with no children » avg. income: approximately + $60-$100K per year
current ranking: 14th in the u.s. » typical user: 43 y/o male in middle management » avg. income: approximately $100K per year
tumblr
current ranking: not in the top 25 » typical user: 18-34 y/o male oe female hipster with no children » avg. income: approximately +$30 to $100K per year
the dea takeaway:
whether you chose to use twitter or myspace to communicate your message, the key is to understand how each of these platforms work. then, dedicating yourself and your company to a few is the best strategy. it is easy to get caught up in the latest and hottest trend, but if you lack the man power to maintain such online properties, you’re doing your company a dis-service.
overextending your company’s online profile is just as dangerous as not having a presence at all. surprisingly, all of the networks, while competing essentially for the same audience, play well in the same sandbox. open api’s and savvy coders have created plug-ins, templates and applications that encourage integration. take advantage of this.
overall, the social network scene will likely have a new internet darling in the next couple of months, and the trick will once again be to reassess whether it brings value to your overall business strategy.
for more information, please contact us at 512.825.6866 to discuss the issues more fully and the specific impact & implications to your business. it’s free!
thedigitalentertainmentalliance.wordpress.com 
… so of the biggest and most interesting social networks above, none of the typical users have children. If I produce product only for mamas with children or mamas about to have children, which social networks do you recommend, because I’m pretty sure that mom’s with children are social networking … especially during that 3am feeding. We know Mom blogs … is there something else?
facebook hands down. since that post 8 months ago, more than 45% of users on fb are over 45; the demographic across heavily toward “mamas.” also check out specific “mama” venues like oprah’s new transmedia empire called OWN (see our piece on OWN), martha stewart’s blog (marthastewart.com), as well as all blogs centered around women, children and lifestyle (e.g., good housekeeping, parenting, etc). you will do much better narrow focusing by demographic and using these sites’ blogs, facebook and twitter accounts. focus on the fb and twitter links each site uses and talk in those channels. also check out japanese social network sites like mixi.ja and gree.ja which have around 50 million users.