Mediaboss Marketing

LEEDS, UNITED KINGDOM--(Marketwire -07/13/12)- For the best part of the last decade, social networking has transformed communication and the way that people interact with each other. But is social networking just for the younger generations, or can older adults join in on the conversation too?

People across the globe have instant access to social networking websites at the touch of a button, allowing them to be more connected than ever before.

Research(i) showed that in 2011 a growing number of over 50's were going online. Popular social networking website, Facebook, for example saw a growing number of older people signing up. Membership to the website increased by 41% between 2009 and 2011. A staggering 84% of those were older users.

It's not just Facebook which is quickly being dominated by the older generation, as a number of over 50s are heading to Twitter for social news and information too.

Further studies show that the number of over 50s heading to Twitter dramatically increased following the Ryan Giggs super-injunction scandal last year.(ii) Figures show that there was a surge in men aged between 50 and 64 who used the website after the news broke.

Over 60% of the UK Twitter audience following the story was made up of men over 50. The number of pensioner aged female Twitter users also doubled to follow the developing news.

A growing number of over 50s are keen to get involved in the latest technology and internet trends. Social networking is as familiar to them as it is to many in the younger generation. Whilst they may be becoming savvier web users, most could benefit from using the internet to become savvier with their personal finances, for example, when looking for over 50s life insurance.

Notes for editors:

(i)http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/online/facebook-flourishes-among-over50s-2303662.html

(ii)Research from Nielsen-UKOM, a UK online measurement company, as reported in the Telegraph

Link:
Is Social Networking Just for the Younger Generation?