advergirl

7 ways we use social now: #3 Have babies

What would you guess is the average age someone first has an online presence?

In North America, Australia and Europe it's 6 months.

This probably isn't a surprise to the 30-somethings reading here. Our friends' and colleagues' blogs, profiles and Twitter feeds are clogged with icky anecdotes, cute photos and other artifcacts of parenting life. What may be a surprise is just how ubiqutous it is. We're not talking "mommy bloggers" here - we're talking parents. Almost all of them.

By 2 years old, 80% of kids can be found online.

Almost 1/4 of parents don't even wait for the birth day - they upload ultrasounds and other scans - creating an online life that predates the real world one. 

Baby photos are definitely the addiction point. 70% of moms post them to share with friends and family.

But, some parents are a lot more planful about it. Just under 10% are actually creating email accounts for their babies.

It's an interesting trend because it's about a lot more than just an online baby book. It's the start of a digital dossier - one created for another human.

(Source: Internet Security company AVG, 2010)

(Love to Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics for the find)

7 ways we use social now: #2 On-the-go community

This isn't a story about Foursquare or its eager little cousin Gowalla. Instead, it's about the most mainstream of the mainstream - Facebook. The platform reaches 62% of the online population. What might surprise you is where it's reaching them.

150 million people use Facebook via mobile. Over 200 developers are creating and deploying even more mobile-friendly tools for the social giant. The reason? It's the #1 driver of their growth right now - getting status updates, party photos and what-kind-of-care-bear-are-you quizzes (literally) into the hands of millions.

The move to mobile doesn't stop with Facebook - mobile social is the #1 fastest growing app category overall (ahead of both news and banking).

All that mobile connecting has a multiplier effect. Facebook recently reported that people who connect via mobile have over twice the amount of activity and engagement as typical computer users.

It's not (all) part of the iPhone elite effect. People are connecting to mobile social via all sorts of devices and browsers. Although iPhone is still in the lead, Blackberry is close behind. (What's up, Andriod?)

The trend is especially true for some of our favorite reach-by-social audiences: like new moms. At home, their go-to chat-with-friends technology is text messaging. On the go, they turn to apps - like Facebook - to connect.

(Previous posts in series)

 

Advergirl elsewhere on the web

Looking for a little more Leigh in your life? Look no further - it's been a busy month and I've got lots to share from around the web. A few highlights:

MedAdNews: How brands are using social context for better offline marketing

Slideshare: Top digital trends in healthcare marketing

BeShareworthy.com: Two storytelling initiatives that really tell it like it is

WYDiQ: Five must-quote statistics on mobile, social and WOM (For more data: Ten healthcare statistics that matter now)

BrandLiberators: In defense of speaking plainly (a shot across the bow at all that annoying lingo that takes over our office communications)