I’ve just posted the newest Nelsen Social Networking Index (or here for archives) with results through January 2009. Headline: The number of people engaged in social networking and the amount of time they collectively devoted increased by all-time record amounts in the past 60 days (Dec 2008 plus Jan 2009).
Interestingly, MySpace engagement now looks like the Titanic 4 hours after networking with the iceberg. Relative to Facebook, in just one year it’s gone from consuming 5X as much of our precious time to just 40%. It’s a stunning 12X reversal of fortune for Rupert Murdock and News Corp. Last month for the first time ever, unique visitors to Facebook exceed those of MySpace… by a total of 10 million as Facebook gained 9 million and MySpace lost 1 million.
I publish this blog for executives running businesses and non-profit organizations. There are two reasons you should care about MySpace and Facebook, plus Twitter, TalkShoe, LinkedIn, Ning, GetSatisfaction, Crowdsping, and the like:
- This (meaning social networking) is the primary way that your customers and prospects under 35-years old are communicating today. If you’re lucky, they’re already talking about you and you should join the conversation (or else you must create one).
- These are the mediums that define your future employees. If you don’t understand them (the tools and networks), you won’t understand them (the X- and Y-generations).
There’s no time like the present to get started. Click the RSS for this blog and I’ll tell you more of what I know about this world behind the looking glass.