A massive survey of internet users reveals trends in social media usage across numerous platforms, ages, races, genders, population density and more. Which social media sites should you be focusing on for YOUR target market?

The Pew Research Center has released the results of a comprehensive social media survey, conducted over several years to evaluate which demographics were using social media, and on which platforms. Which social networking sites emerged on top?

Of the online adults surveyed at the end of 2012:

• 67% use Facebook
  
• 20% use LinkedIn
  
• 16% use Twitter
  
• 15% use Pinterest
  
• 13% use Instagram
  
• 6% use Tumblr
  

A decent amount of Americans appear to be using social media, but which demographics use social media in greater numbers?

It appears that women use social media 9% more than men do, at a whopping rate of 71%. Other frontrunners with the highest social network activity in their demographic include city dwellers (70%), Hispanics (72%) and adults with a household income below $30,000 annually (72%).

The most pervasive and consistent divider amongst social media users remains, unsurprisingly, their age. 83% of the young adult demographic (18-29 year olds) use social media, which is well over double the activity of online adults over 65 years old (32%).

When it comes to age, social media usage has regularly been divided on a sliding scale, with consistently less social networking activity as age increases. This has been the case since the survey began back in 2005. However, there have been several interesting age changes to note…

• Although 18-29 year olds have always maintained the highest percentage of social media usage, their activity dropped for the first recorded time in December 2012, from 92% to 83%, bringing them lower than their numbers over two years prior.
  
• The only age range that increased its social networking usage in December 2012 was 30-49 year olds, who increased from 73% to 77% of users.
  

This could indicate an increasing trend of middle-aged social media users, a number which may continue to expand as the younger generation ages.

Aside from obvious division of age, there are still certain social media sites that attract specific demographics much more heavily than others. You may be able to better target your specific markets by keeping the demographic tendencies of each platform in mind:

• Pinterest: Significantly more rural residents, women, Caucasians, people with some level of college education and individuals with a middle to higher income
  
• Twitter: Significantly more slanted towards the 18-29 demographic, African-Americans and urban residents
  
• Instagram: Greater use amongst African-Americans and Hispanics, urban users, 18-29 year olds, and women
  
• Facebook: There’s less demographic distinction on Facebook, since it’s already so ubiquitous. However, there are 10% more women than men, and like most networking sites, it is heavily used by the youngest adult age group.
  

Source: Pew Research Center

Are you looking for an effective, informative, and creative way to source new business?  Web videos are the KEY.  A proven strategy for using web videos to generate leads is to create a “how-to” tips & tricks series related to your particular industry. 

Here’s an example of a tried-and-true scenario that's worked for thousands of businesses; they are the steps you’ll want to follow in order to benefit from this type of web video marketing strategy.

1. Create a branded name for your email newsletter and landing page where you will offer the FREE video premium in exchange for a prospect’s name and email address.

2. Purchase the domain name for your branded landing page and newsletter.

3. Create the FREE video premium that will be offered on your landing page in exchange for the prospect’s name and email address. (How to Pick the Right Health Insurance Coverage For Your Family, 10 Things to Consider Before Choosing a Realtor to Sell Your Home, 5 Ways to Boost Small Business Profits Before You Leave the Office Today, etc, etc.)

4. Design your email newsletter template or optimize your current design with the purpose of promoting web video content.

5. Determine the content and creative concept for your web video series.

6. Produce the opening, closing and overall graphics package that will be used for each web video.

7. Produce the first (4) pilot web videos.

8. Once you’ve completed these action items, you’ll be ready to launch your web video marketing campaign!

Want to produce “How To” marketing videos for your business? Contact us today for more information or to request a quote.

Felton Interactive Group {FIG}  -  A digital video production and editing agency based in Atlanta, GA.

{FIG} is extremely excited to announce that we will begin producing commercials and Videon On Demand (VOD) for Comcast's advertising clients in 2013.  This new relationship matches FIG's outstanding production abilities with Comcast's world-class advertising and sales capabilities to deliver a superior combination of services to both FIG's and Comcast's clients. 

About Comcast Spotlight:

Comcast Spotlight’s mission is to make the complex simple. Audiences are fragmented: watching content from multiple networks, on more devices and subscribing to different communications providers. The good news? We’re the experts in fragmentation, assembling the audience you want to reach, where and when they’re watching TV.

From mom-and-pop stores around the corner to the leading brands around the country, our focus is on helping all of our clients become more effective and efficient with their advertising spend. With a presence in nearly 80 markets, reaching 33+ million homes served by cable television, telco (telephone company) and satellite providers, Comcast Spotlight’s more than 3,000 employees are true local media consultants.

Reaching and engaging customers today means going beyond airing a traditional ad on television on one or two networks. It means selecting the precise networks to target your ideal customers. It means interactivity, inviting viewers to connect with you one-to-one. It means featuring your video online. It means offering customers the opportunity to watch long-form content about your business. It also means being able to accurately measure the results of your advertising, based on the metrics that matter to your business. That’s why we combine actionable marketing intelligence, state-of-the art technology and best-in-class analytics to optimize results for every client.

As a B2B marketer or business owner, your company’s video is more important than ever.

Entrepreneur Magazine recently summed up why professionally produced video is so vital: “All too often, companies produce lackluster videos with bad lighting, poor sound and monotonous delivery, and then wonder why consumers run to higher-quality content.  It's a simple equation: consumers equate poor videos to poor products."  

Your video is the most genuine depiction of your business—and these days, you can’t take it back once it’s out there. MAKE IT COUNT!  See how we do it at {FIG} - Atlanta Business Video

Whether you're new to creating web videos for your business or you're an old pro at it, our new download, '101 Reasons Why Web Videos Work', is sure to give you greater insite into the effectiveness of online videos and how important they are to your  long-term success.

'101 Reasons Why Web Videos Work' is available for download here: Atlanta Business Videos

Felton Interactive Group is pleased and humbled to announce that we've been hired to produce & direct a country music video that pays tribute to Army Specialist Erica Alecksen.  

The song, "Proud", by Tim Cadiere & The Creole Ride is more than just your typical country music song.  As Tim says -

All of us at {FIG} are excited and honored to work on this touching project.

ABOUT ERICA ALECKSEN:
Army Spc. Erica P. Alecksen
KIA: July 8, 2012 
Operation Enduring Freedom
Assigned to 978th Military Police Company, 93rd Military Police Battalion, Fort Bliss, Texas

Erica Alecksen grew up in Eatonton, Georgia, and graduated from Putnam County High School in 2009. Soon after graduation she joined the US Army.  She was a model teenager, she was a model child, she was a model soldier, and she had a moral compass that was dead center.  In August 2010, Alecksen was assigned to the 978th Military Police Company, 93rd Military Police Battalion and stationed in Fort Bliss, Texas and was with unit ever since. She married Tim Bailey, who is from El Paso.  Specialist Alecksen was deployed to Afghanistan. On July 8th, she was riding in an armored vehicle in Wardak province. It was destroyed by the blast of a roadside bomb. Army Specialist Erica P. Alecksen was 21 years old when she was killed.

{FIG} is always excited to work with and support local charities and non-profit organizations.  We're pleased to announce that we've donated a new website to the great people at SneakerSavior.   SneakerSavior is a non-profit organization that uses your gently used “sneakers” to bring persons together through sports and team work, while spreading the Word of God.

Abut SneakerSaviour - Our mission is to reach the unreached through community events, mission trips, donation drives and church outreach programs.  Our goal is to spread the Word of God through personal testimonies, written word and bring together persons who may not other wise interact directly.  We have given our organization to God to work to his glory in all things and praise his mercies in all things.

SneakerSavior is a orginazation based on personal accomplishments and ideals through which we hope to bring persons into the Kingdom of God using sports, athletes and coaches as a platform.