-By Jackie Wasilewski
Most American’s spend a majority of their free time on different social media sites. But does that mean men and women spend the same amount of time on these sites? According to Pew Research Center, women actually use social media more, but only by an 8% margin between the two genders.
Women have always seemed to use social media and the internet more than men. Between December 2009 and December 2012 women were much more likely to use social media sites with about 10% more, according to Pew Research Center.
Even though men and women use social media different amounts of time, does that mean that women use every site more than men? It has been proven that men and women do in fact use each site a different amount of time. Women use Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram more, while men use Twitter and Reddit more. Men and Women do, in fact, use Tumblr the same amount. Pew Research created a graph to represent their findings...
Not only do men and women use social media sites for different amounts of time, they also make different uses of the sites.
While men and women use social media sites a different amount of time, there are known to have different uses for these sites. According to entrepreneur.com, women are more likely to share posts on Facebook than men, with 62% of women participating. Women also typically have about 8% more friends than men do. Women will also use Pinterest much more than men, typically for tutorials, DIY, and recipes. Men aren't on Pinterest much at all.
Men prefer sites such as Google+, LinkedIn and YouTube. Only about 1 in 4 men actually use Google+ as a social network, according to entrepreneur.com. The other 75% of the men using Google+ don’t actually interact with the other users on the site.
Surprisingly, more men use LinkedIn over women. Most men use the free version while 1 out of 10 male users pay for a Premium Account. Men use the site for researching companies, reconnecting with past business associates and face-to-face networking opportunities. Statistically, 54% of the users on LinkedIn are male.
Another popular social media site for men is YouTube. Again, statistics tout 54% of the 280 million active users are of the male variety. Men spend more time watching videos than women. Women only spend about 35 minutes on YouTube a week, while men are spending about an hour.
Social media and social media sites ebbs and flows with trends. Some sites will always be a favorite amongst men and women. I don't see how Pinterest will attract a male following as long as popular pins like "Homemade Bath Salts in a Milk Jug" are being flung around. Changing trends and time, will tell if all this changes and sites become more gender neutral.
About Socialty:
Socialty is a full-service social media marketing and social recruiting agency in Chicago. We create content, websites, blog posts, email marketing and strategic marketing plans for small and medium size businesses. Our social recruiting team helps you attract talented candidates via social media outlets. Socialty connects you to your audience and potential employees. We'll keep you social while you carry on with your business. Keep Social and Carry On!
Jackie Wasilewski is a Spring 2014 Intern for Socialty and Senior at University of St. Francis in Joliet, Illinois. She is a Mass Communication Student and is set to graduate in May 2014. She loves creating fun projects in Photoshop, Social Media and nail polish.
