Social Media - Including Blogging - Now Popular Among Gen Y

Stamford, CT – December 1, 2008 - Anderson Analytics – GenX2Z this week released partial findings from their 2009 US College Student Report. The longitudinal study tracks US college students' attitudes and behaviors since 2005. Different from other surveys which track youth trends, Anderson Analytics' surveys contain several open ended questions which allow unaided, more accurate insights into which advertisements, brands, and websites are most important among students. Results are then coded using advances text analytics.

This years GenX2Z study went beyond the most popular websites and took a closer look at students use of social media including blogging, discussion boards, and social network services (SNS) such as Facebook, Myspace, and even professional networking site LinkedIn.

Facebook remained the number one website this year after overtaking MySpace in 2007. Myspace has continued to drop and is currently in fourth place after Google and Yahoo! which both have offered additional services which students appreciate. Three new sites this year among the college students top-10 are LiveJournal, Amazon, and CNN.

LiveJournal which is now in 6th place after YouTube is new on Anderson's list and is indicative of how blogging is catching on among students. The popularity of blogging is being largely driven by college women who are three times more likely than their male counterparts to have maintain a blog.

"We were surprised to see how blogging has gained in popularity among college students" said Tom H. C. Anderson, founder and managing partner of Anderson Analytics, "From our other research we know that among online adults, only about 13% read blogs and 3% have their own blog. Students are four times more likely to blog, which means blogging will continue to be a relevant and popular new media".

Students are heavy users of social networks, however Facebook is by far more popular both overall and in terms of frequency of use. Over 80% of students use Facebook compared to 40% for the second most popular MySpace. Facebook is also used more often with 74% of students accessing the site at least once a week. Interestingly, social networking site LinkedIn, which has a much older member base, is also starting to catch on among 10% of students.

Anderson Analytics – GenX2Z College Study is conducted every year in the Fall semester among 1,000 US college students. All participants have confirmed .edu emails. Sample provides statistics with a +/-3.1% confidence interval at the 95% confidence level.


About Anderson Analytics

More than market research, Anderson Analytics is the first next marketing research consultancy to combine new technologies, such as link analysis, data and text mining, with traditional market research. Anderson Analytics helps clients gain The Information Advantage by combining the efficiencies and business experience found in large research firms with the rigorous methodological understanding from academia and the creativity found only in smaller firms. For more information, please visit http://www.andersonanalytics.com

About GenX2Z

Whether you call them the 'MTV', 'Boomerang', 'I', or 'New Silent' Generation, GenX2Z will dictate what the will look like tomorrow. Anderson Analytic's GenX2Z Consulting focuses on studying this growing demographic and their use of media. Learn more at: www.genx2z.com.