The August 2009 study, titled "Women & Brands Online: 'The Digital Disconnect' Emerges," investigates the digital lives of women and how brands fit into that world.
The full results of the study were presented ad:tech Chicago, on Sept. 2, by Wise and Jonathan Ashton of Agency.com. Â
- 75% of women say they are "more active" in social networking than last year, and more than half (54%) report visiting social networking sites at least once per day. Nearly 31% say they visit weekly, and 7% say monthly.
- The social network most used by women is Facebook--nearly two-thirds of women say they use it most--followed by the nearly 16% who cite MySpace. About 3% report using Twitter the most.
- 75% of women say social networking sites "not really" (38%) or "not at all" (37%) influence what they buy. Still, about 22% report that social networking sites "somewhat" influence what they buy, and some 3% report being "greatly" influenced.
- Though 83% of women feel either "neutral" (64%) or "negative" (19%) when they see a brand on a social networking site, and only 17% say they feel "positive," 52% of women surveyed have "befriended" or "become a fan of" at least one brand.
- Asked what they do most on social networking sites, 10% of women say they engage in product/brand-related activities ("get product information, including coupons and savings" and "writing reviews about products").
- Sending private messages, cited by nearly 35% of women, is the activity women engage in most on social networking sites, followed by sharing photos and chatting/sending instant messages (roughly 13% eacj).
As for where social networks figure in women's online activity overall, the study found as follows:
- Checking/updating their status on social networking sites is third on the list of what they do online, with more than 12% of women saying so.
- Checking email (33%) and (23%) looking for coupons and savings are first and second.
- Shopping is third (12%), followed by playing games (10%)
Where have women found the time to become so engaged in social media? Apparently by reducing time with other media:
- Some 46% say they now spend less time watching TV as a result of spending time on social networking sites.
- Next to suffer is reading books (24%) and reading magazines (23%), followed by watching movies, listening to the radio, and reading the newspaper (each cited by roughly 17-19%).
The survey also asked women about the most important factor in making purchase decisions: Price was cited 47%, and quality was cited by 46%. Brand was fourth at 2% ("other" was third at less than 4%).
Ann Handley is an 11-year veteran of creating and managing digital and is currently the Chief Content Officer of http://www.marketingprofs.com, which provides strategic and tactical marketing know-how for marketing and business professionals. She also blogs at http://www.annhandley.com.
Photo credit: andrewarchy Â
