Ever wonder why people are glued to their smartphones these days and what they are reading? Ever wonder who is driving the use of mobile Internet and social media in particular these days? If you are like most people you probably think it is the 20 and 30-somethings and a few years ago you would have been right.
Today the fastest growth of mobile social media is with the 55 plus age group, baby boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), according to a Nielsen study.
Social media once meant you got together with some friends, ate some popcorn and watch a movie on Television! Today, it is a transformative behavioral technology that changes the way people communicate and gives people-watchers something else to watch.
According to a Nielsen study, “State of the Media: The Social Media Report”, 55 + consumers are leading the way on mobile social, boomers like us! The number of Internet users 55 and older viewing social sites over mobile devices “grew by 109 percent over the year before,” according to Nielsen. Almost “40% of social users view these sites on their mobile phones,” per the Nielsen report.
Why is this good to know you may ask? Well, it is important to know that the Internet and social media are dramatically changing people’s behavior and how they communicate with each other. I am fascinated by what I see people doing today on their smartphones even when they are crossing a busy intersection. Quite frankly it’s hard to imagine why there are not more accidents on the sidewalks and streets among people who have their eyes glued to their smartphones checking out Facebook posts or tweets. It’s almost as if they have personal radar that allows them to instinctively know when the light changes.
Nielsen reports that Americans spend more time on Facebook than on any other website and you see evidence of this every day. One of the first things my boomer wife does before breakfast is go right to her Facebook page on her smartphone or tablet to see what her friends have shared overnight and in the wee hours of the morning.
Does she really need to know about a comment her sister in law’s son shared on his Facebook page about a customer at their restaurant the day before? TMI, you may be thinking and you would be right. But, apparently this fascinates people and they can’t seem to get enough of it, thus the rise in mobile use of the Internet and boomers appear to be leading the charge.