Social Media and Networking - UK - May 2011

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Social Media and Networking

May 2011



© 2011 Mintel Group Limited. A ll rights reserved. Confidential to Mintel.2

Issues in the Market

How should businesses extend their marketing efforts in socialmedia and social networks?

How important is social networking on the go?

Will social commerce outshine e-commerce?

Will Facebook continue to dominate the social networking landscape?



© 2011 Mintel Group Limited. A ll rights reserved. Confidential to Mintel.

Internal Market Environment

Rising broadband penetration, with thehelp of government funded campaigns, ismaking online social networkingaccessible to more people, especially theolder and poorer consumers.

Falling hardware and mobile internetcosts will expand the use of socialnetworking on the go, further integrating

social networking into everyday lives.

Non-internet users do not express adesire for social networking, but thegrowing benefits of social networks (suchas job search and shopping discounts)will attract non-users especially if privacyconcerns are addressed.

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Broader Market Environment

Consumers becoming more price-conscious due to falling GDP andconsumer confidence could actuallyincrease the use of social networksand their value-added services suchas shopping discounts.

Inflation, especially for telecomequipment and services, could

dissuade consumers’ purchase orupgrade of hardware and services,potentially delaying the acceptance of social networking services via mobiledevices by current non-users.

An older population will be moreresistant to adopting social networking

into their everyday lives, but moreuser-friendly devices and the desire toconnect with younger family memberscould persuade them to try it out.

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Competitive Context

The ability to send offline,informal messages via social

networks has contributed tolower uses of e-mail andinstant messaging services.

Games on social networkingplatforms disrupt theestablished casual,multiplayer gamingplatforms.

News aggregation servicesoffered by social mediacompanies can be a sourceof referral for contentcreators, but news outletsthat have not incorporatedsocial media strategies mayget left behind.

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Percentage of total unique visitors to the internetfrom home and work in UK, by activities, June 2008 – March 2011

Source: comScore/Mintel




Strengths and Weaknesses

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• Noise

• Blurring the line between public and private

• Spam

• Downtime

• Social media success ≠ sales

• Humanising a brand

• Engagement lead

• Wisdom of the crowd

• Real time gauge of reactions

• Spreading (select) messages

quickly




Branches of Social Media

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Social Media

SocialNetworking

General

TopicSpecific

Commerce

Deals

Recommendations

Gaming Communication

Blogs & Microblogs

LocationBased

Information

Wisdom of the Crowd

Navigation

Reviews

Events

Publishing

Q&A

Forums

Multimedia

Photography

Video

Music

Sounds

Social media encompasses more than just social networking;it includes any services that facilitate content sharingamongst users.

Location-based services bring opportunities for bothbusinesses and customers alike, especially as new technology

develops to make pin- pointing a user’s location moreaccurate, but consumers need guidance on how to use themand what benefits are available.

Social media services for sharing documents can be a tool forbusinesses to communicate their policies, ranging fromcorporate governance to ethical focuses and other initiatives.




Users of Social Networks

Facebook is the number onesocial network in the UK, withregular usage towering over itsnearest competitors includingTwitter and Friends Reunited,thanks to its own innovations aswell as development by third-party developers that attractusers to stay on the service forlonger.

Social networks that offer value-added services to their membershave a better chance of retaining an active user base,such as LinkedIn which offersprofessional networking. Asonline social networks become alarger part of everyday lives,more people will becomemembers of multiple networks.

One in five internet users havenever used social networkingservices before.

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“How often, if at all, do you use each of the following social networking sites?”

Social networks used, March 2011

Base: 2,000 internet users aged 16+

Source: GMI/Mintel




Accessing Social Networks

Access to social networks viamobile phones will increase, andcompanies who use social mediafor promotion should ensurecontent is optimised for smallerscreens.

Women are more likely to usesocial networking sites but lesslikely than men to access themvia mobile phone or tablet PCs,highlighting a marketingopportunity for device makers.

Older consumers may find socialmedia use on mobile devicesmore palatable if screen size andother features cater for them.

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“How often, if at all, do you use each of the following devices to access social networking sites?”

Devices used to access social networking sites, March 2011

Base: 1,597 internet users aged 16+ who use social networking sites

Source: GMI/Mintel




Why Use Social Networks?

Internet users predominantly use socialnetworks to keep in touch with friendsbut prefer not to use them to find love.

Social networking is the most regularactivity performed online by youths aged7-19, ahead of using the internet forstudies, e-mails, and general research.

One in four social network users playgames on social networks, withparticipation rates the highest amongstconsumers aged 35-44. Social gamingprovides a new marketing angle byincorporating brands into a game.

Younger people use social networks tokeep up with the latest news,highlighting how information sharing and

consumption is shifting from traditionalmedia websites to social networks.

Social media accounts of businessesneed to offer additional content andvalue-added services different from theirexisting website in order to attract visitsfrom customers.

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“Which of the following do you use social networking sites for?”

Reasons for using social networking sites, March 2011

Base: 1,597 internet users aged 16+who use social networking sites

Source: GMI/Mintel




General Attitudes towards Social Networks

Two in three social networkers paylittle attention to adverts on socialnetworking websites, and less thanone in ten buy products advertisedon social networks.

Overcoming concerns over privacyand the sharing of personal data willhelp increase consumers’ confidencein social networks and participation

in their services, including location-based features and social commerce.

Communicating via social networks isbecoming the norm, especially forthose under the age of 35, butcompanies need to ensure they don’toverload users with social mediacommunication that would become

social junk mail.Paid social networking will find anaudience if it provides value-addedservices that cannot be freely oreasily found elsewhere, but this mayfurther dissuade the disadvantagedfrom accessing these valuableservices.

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“To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements?”

Attitudes towards social networking sites, March 2011

Base: 1,597 internet users aged 16+who use social networking sites

Source: GMI/Mintel



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Social Media and Networking - UK - May 2011

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