Conference Board: 43% of Internet users now in social networks - Los Angeles Business from bizjournals:

younkinesagugad1746.blogspot.com
Of web users, 43 percengt use a social networking up from 27 percent last the nonprofit global researchgroup said. in its quarterlyy Consumer Internet Barometer. The most popular site is used by 78 percent of socialnetwork participants, followed by MySpac (42 percent), LinkedIn (17 percent) and (10 percent). The surve y tracks about 10,000 Internet-equipped households nationwide. It said seniors age 55 and older are quickly increasing their use of social up from 6 percent last year to 19 percentythis year. Women are more likelhy than men touse social-network sites (48 percentt versus 38 percent).
The majority of userx log on at home, The Conferenc e Board said, with a quarter logging on at and 10 percent connecting throughtheit phone. More than half say they log on at leasty oncea day. ""Online social networks are more than just a fad amont theyounger generation," Lynn Franco, director of The Conferenc Board Consumer Research Center, said in a statemenft Tuesday. "They've become an integral part of our personal andprofessionakl lives. They’re an effectivre way to keep in touchwith people, connect with friends and and network with colleagues. "Social media will also transformj marketing as weknow it.
They’re powerfu communication tools, and are becomingg an essential part of successfulmarketinhg strategies." The survey said Facebookk is equally popular among men and women, whiled women are more likely than men (47 perceny versus 35 percent) to use MySpace and more men than women (21 percenty versus 15 percent) use LinkedIn. Users of the micro-blogging site Twittert say their top reasonsfor "tweeting" are to connectf with friends (42 percent), update theier status (29 percent), look for news (26 and for work-related reasons (22 percent).