The GlobalWebIndex group based in the UK recently released the findings of its latest research into both new and continuing trends in the way consumers access and use Web-based platforms and came up with a fresh new look at some of the key trends that are driving consumer acceptance and behaviors on the Internet today.
The GlobalWebIndex GWI.6 Trends Report represents one of the world’s most detailed global insight studies ever to attempt to analyze key changes in online behaviors based on interviews with more than 122,000 users in 27 different Internet markets. The GlobalWebIndex study series began in July 2009, and updated with six waves of new research, including three more later this year throughout 2012. What GlobalWebIndex found was a new look at Google’s continuing dominance along with the saturation of Facebook growth resulting from Facebook fatigue.
While this latest version of the Internet study may show that Facebook fatigue is spreading, it also shows that but social networking is still the fastest-growing active social media behavior online today and that the use of social media sites increased from 36% of global Internet users in 2009, to nearly 60% of all users by the end of 2011. The use of Twitter increased from 13% to 24% over the same period and the number of people who uploaded videos increased from 21% to 27%.
Another new wrinkle in the landscape was the findings that while the use of social media increased, the numbers of ‘forum’ contributions dropped from 38% to 32% and blog-writing held steady at 27% of users, leading the researchers to conclude that blogging is no longer considered the same thing as social networking. It appears the difference is that social networking is confined to sharing and building opt-in networks of friends and contacts, while blogging is published to the whole world, and anyone can follow the work.
The GlobalWebIndex GWI.6 Trends Report shows that the most socially-engaged market in the world is China, where 84% of Internet users contribute at least once a month to a mix of social networking, blogging, video-uploading, photo-sharing, microblogging or forums. Surprisingly,
next in line are Russia, Brazil and India, where huge increases in social networking have only just recently taken place. The numbers are not as impressive for the UK at 64% of Internet users participating in social networking platforms, with the U.S. following at 60% and Germany coming in at 52%.
The evidence points to the fact that while social networking may be the fastest growing activity within the broader social media sphere on the Internet, it also shows that some people still prefer the more closed and intimate nature of closed group social networking activities. The GlobalWebIndex report also showed that Google is maintaining its position as the world’s largest controller of information and dominates the most access points to the Internet. Google Search is used by more than 85% of global Internet users every month and Google+ is growing exponentially in countries outside of the U.S. like India where 49% of social network users now have active Google+ profiles.
The latest GlobalWebIndex report shows the increasing fragmentation of the global internet as, consumers in the fastest growing internet markets like Brazil, China, and India participate online more than ever before. The result is an Internet where each different market has its own different behaviors and relationships, further demonstrating the fact that there is no single global Internet culture and that brand and content producers will need more localized strategies going forward.
New.com