We get it. The realm of social media can be overwhelming, maybe even a little scary. It’s something new and you don’t quite know exactly what it even is. I mean, just hearing the number of active users on the major channels is daunting: Facebook boasts over 1.4 billion (with a b); LinkedIn comes in at almost 350 million; Google+ has 300 million; and 288 million people around the globe are sending tweets on Twitter.
And those numbers just continue to grow.
But what about your audience--seniors looking into their care options? Sure, all of the young people are on there, but they won’t do much to help you increase your census. Well, I have a surprise for you: your customers are there, and we’ll go more in-depth with that a little later.
You’ll notice that I used the term “major channels” above. When discussing social media, most people only think of the four mentioned above. However, the number of apps and websites that are considered social media increase every day. From Instagram to Snapchat to Periscope, it may seem like these social channels are taking over the internet. And maybe they are.
Social Media Usage Since the Early 2000s
Many consider Facebook the pioneer of the social media world, but that’s just because its user base has grown so large over the years. LinkedIn was actually the first major social channel to establish itself (in 2002) followed by Facebook in early 2004. Twitter came onto the scene in 2006 with Google+ arriving in 2011.
So let’s look at usage numbers. As a baseline, we’ll start in February 2005, where roughly 8 percent of internet users were actively using at least one social media channel. As of September 2013, that percentage has ballooned to 73--or a 900 percent increase. And that’s among all internet users of all ages, a number that has increased by almost 2 billion people over that same time period.
It’s safe to say that there’s a huge audience in the social media world, but what about your audience? I told you we’d get to that eventually.
Social Media Use Among Seniors
When social networks really started coming onto the scene, the engagement among the senior crowd was understandably low. Maybe even lower than you thought (it was 1% in 2006). Flash forward to 2013 and almost half of internet users age 65 or older are active on social media.
Surprised? Don’t be.
Although the older people in this country are slower to adapt to new technologies, that doesn’t mean they are completely against it. Seniors throughout the United States understand the advantages of being tech-savvy and are willing to embrace the robust world of computers.
That’s exactly why you need to be there for them.
As we said before, you may not think that your audience is utilizing social media. The numbers prove otherwise. However, if you’re still not convinced, keep in mind that the middle-aged population will soon be looking for their future care options, and that demographic is using social media even more than the current seniors.
A dedicated digital strategy that includes social media is going to be an absolute necessity in the future, so why not get ahead of your competition NOW and start generating those leads? Give Marketing Essentials a call at 419.629.0080 and learn how one of our digital strategists can help your community today.
