Baby Boomers Love Facebook (And All Of The Other Online Goodness)

One common misnomer is that Social Media and the Internet is a place for kids, teens and university students exclusively.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

One of the most mind-blowing stats about the Web came out in July of 2009 when it was reported that there are more grandparents than high school students on Facebook. While most people still try to wrap their heads around this very real reality, it looks like baby boomers (person who was born during the demographic Post-World War II baby boom) are taking to the Web, engaging, joining the conversation and taking part in many online communities. That was the news yesterday via eMarketer in the news item, Baby Boomers Get Connected with Social Media.

Here are some of the highlights:

• 47% of online boomers maintain a profile on at least one social network.
• Facebook is the favourite social network for boomers.
• Only 10% of online boomers were Twittering in September 2009.
• The percentage of boomer blog readers or writers registers in just the single digits.
• Although 49% of boomers said a purchase decision was influenced by an online review or recommendation on a retailer’s site, just 9% said their shopping behavior was influenced by something they saw on a blog or online community.
• For most boomers, being in constant contact is a personal choice, not one dictated by technology.

It’s moving slowly, but it is moving. Here’s the bottom line:

"Creating and renewing personal connections online is the biggest draw for boomers… Their contacts include family, friends and co-workers of all ages," according to the report, Boomers And Social Media ($695 USD) available via eMarketer. This demographic is still in the nascent phase of adoption, but the early numbers are encouraging and as the technology (this includes hardware, software and platforms) increase in ease of use, it is anticipated that these numbers will, obviously, improve as well.

Now, go out and friend your grandparent, will ya?