Who uses social media more often – men or women? Who is the leading force behind social media use via mobile? According to a new research, women run the social media world – Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram all attract more women than men.
Today, everyone has Twitter or Facebook account, but apparently there are some striking differences between how people use social media websites, particularly the differences between genders. It turns out women use social networks more often than men. Nothing new under the sun – back in 2010, Forbes said that ladies were the dominant force, for Facebook usage in particular, with 57% female and 43% male users. The trend continues with even a larger gap, according to the new study by FinanceOnline. Analyzing data from PEW, Nielsen, and Burst Media, they found that women use social media more often and in more ways than men. In fact, more women are on social media than men, with one exception – LinkedIn. Here are the numbers – 76% of the female Internet users are on Facebook, compared to only 66% of men; Tumblr – 54% female, 46% male, Instagram – 20% female, 15% male; Pinterest – 33% female, 8% male; Twitter – 18% female, 17% male, and LinkedIn – 19% female, 24% male.
The biggest difference is logically with Pinterest, which is more or less, focused on the female part of the population. More interestingly, women are also leading when it comes to social media use through mobile devices. 46% of women use their smartphone to check in for social media updates, compared to 43% of men who use smartphones. It’s similar with tablets – 32% of women use their tablets, compared to only 20% of men. The ladies also tend to check on their social media accounts more often than men. 30% of women said they use social networks several times per day. The percentage for men is only 26.
Another interesting finding is that women are more likely to interact with brands through social networks than men. More than half of the women show support (54%) and access offers (53%), compared to 44% and 36% of men doing the same. Ladies are also more likely to stay current with brands and comment on their posts. In addition, more women get their news updates from social media – 58%, compared to 42% of men. They consume their news more often in Facebook than Google+.
Overall, women are more active on social media websites, but they are also the ones driving the growth of the so-called “Visual Web”. According to data from the study, visual sites Pinterest, Instagram, and Tumblr have gained ten million new users over the past one year only! This makes them the fastest growing social networks and the driving force of this growth is women! If the trend remains the same, soon social media platforms will be overrun by women and the visual websites will be the biggest.
