2009 Social Media Survey Shows How Women Bloggers Will Change the World

There's critical information in the 2009 Social Media Survey conducted by BlogHer, iVillage and Compass Partners that you (Constant Reader) and I (Constant Blogger) and they (advertisers, businesses, brand marketers) need to pay attention to. Tidbits that reveal how women bloggers are going to change the world.

Here's what an eMarketer article reveals:

• The US female internet population is 79 million
• More than half (53%) participate in social media at least once a week
• Of that 53%, 3/4ths are into social networking and 55% are into blogs

Regarding those blogs:

• 22.7 million women read them
• 12 million post to them
• 8 million write them

And here's the kicker: Although the vast majority (72%) use social networks for fun, they don't regard social networks as valuable sources of information. Instead they turn to blogs, at twice the numbers of those who go to social networks for info and advice.

Where women ages 18-77 go to:

• Get information: blogs (64%) vs. social networks (32%)
• Seek advice and recommendations: blogs (43%) vs. social networks (20%)
• Stay up to date on specific topics: blogs (51%) vs. social networks (25%)

Women who read, write and participate in blogs are so excited about this form of media that they're cutting back on other 'old-media' such as reading newspapers and magazines, listening to the radio, talking to friends on the phone and even watching TV to make the time they need online.

So what is this telling us?

Bloggers are infiltrating women's lives and influencing their interests in ways that are leaving radio, TV, and newspaper advertisers choking in their own dust.

As I've said before, this personal recommendation (some call it word-of-mom) is so influential because it feels intimate and meaningful as compared to the scattershot approach of old media.

As one of those who commissioned the study, Susan Wright of Compass Partners notes, "Bloggers represent a highly engaged and influential segment of social media users for brand marketers looking to connect to consumers online."

Advertisers go where the money is. Women are creating and establishing outposts (websites, blogs) on the internet where the money is congregating. That money represents the combined spending power of women (especially moms) worldwide. Did you know it's in the trillions? Don't you deserve some of that for yourself?

Thanks for reading this blog post. But just as important as my words are your own thoughts. What are they, and where are you expressing them? Are you blogging? If so, where? If not, why not?

Also read:

• We Surf, We Blog, We Decide - Women's Power Felt on the Internet
• Oprah & Mommy Bloggers - Why We All Need To Blog
• San Francisco Chronicle - "It's a Women's World Wide Web"