DiDigital

Global Social : US And EU Mature, Emerging Markets Show Lots Of Activity

Last month George Colony, CEO of Forrester, talked about a “Social Thunderstorm” at the LeWeb conference in Paris .

In the six years that Forrester has been collecting data, a lot has changed in the world of social media. Social networking has morphed into a global phenomenon. Today, 86% of online US adults and 79% of European online adults engage with social media. And consumers in emerging markets are also on social media — not just catching up. In fact, they lead the world in social media usage and engagement.

Comparing social behaviors in the US and Europe, we see that the majority of online Americans and Europeans are Spectators — meaning they consume social media content but do not necessarily create it. In fact, less than one-quarter of these consumers are Creators — the individuals who generate social content. We also found that while Americans and Europeans take a more passive approach to social media, this is different in emerging markets. For instance, more than two-thirds of online adults in metro China and India create social content. The message is clear: Companies can’t afford to take a “one-size-fits-all” approach with social media.