Blogs, social networks used by the wealthy

Marketers wanting to make inroads to wealthy clientele should target blogs and social networks. That, according to a new study which indicates that the wealthy in America are interacting on social networking sites and reading blogs more than the general public.

by Kristina Knight

According to a recent survey from the Luxury Institute, a full 76% of wealthy Americans are reading blogs. That is up from 57% in the 2005 study. Also interesting is that more wealthy Americans are blogging themselves (24%), up from 18% in 2005.

Compare that with the median income Americans and it is clear that those with more money appear to be more interested in technological advances. According to the report, only 25% of the general American population read blogs and only 9% maintain their own blogs.

Instant messaging is also a mode of communication that more wealthy Americans are using (55%) than the general public (39%). Also, 31% of wealthy Americans are active on a social networking site compared with only 16% of the general public.

For the study, the Luxury Institute polled 1,000 web users making $150,000 or more each year.

This is a clear indication that marketers with high-end merchandise need to accommodate the wealthy in their online advertising campaigns. Rather than simply purchases display ads on supposed-high-end websites, marketers may get a better response from advertising within the social mediums - advertising within high-traffic blogs or on social networks.

Tags: blogs, demographic research, social marketing, targeted marketing

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Interesting piece - thanks. This just tells me that Business is going to be a key growth area in social networks. It's also confirming for me that the time is getting close when more and more brands will be turning to social media as a way to integrate and interact with their customers. At the moment, they are not quite sure how to go about it and there is real concern at the potential loss of control of the communication process. Advertisers will have to learn new skills - not least of which will be moderation and the art of 'creating ripples'. Posting polls won't be enough to interact with customers. It is a real art knowing how to engage the attention of prospects without appearing to be overtly advertising. My prediction is that such interactions through social media will start in small, quite controlled areas - more as a sort of online 'fan club' initially where the moderator provides simply content, content, content. Gradually the group will grow and take a life of its own so that the community itself provides the content. The moderator's job will then be to create the feedback he/she wants by creating more ripples. As an example, I'm working with Passion for the Planet - a DAB digital radio station in the UK, where we are running such a club for them. Ultimately we expect thousands of their listeners to use it as their own social network, whilst at the same time interacting and engaging with them so they build a greater depth of trust in other products and services provided by the station. Philip Calvert Author, Social Media Consultant and International Speaker

Posted by: Philip Calvert on April 13, 2007 18:33