Have you always been curious about social networking, but never really gotten into maintaining a Facebook profile, using Twitter, circling your pals on Google +, or linking up with professional contacts on LinkedIn? You’re not entirely alone — yet. 2011 was a landmark year for social networking, with millions of new subscribers to online social sites and services, and it doesn’t just apply to the very young among us. Elderly people are joining the ranks of the social sphere as well, in growing numbers and on a daily basis. That doesn’t mean you’re likely to start seeing adds for AARP or Susnset Magazine all over your profile pages, but it does say something about the evolving demographic of social media. It’s something we need to pay attention to. Here’s why.
It used to be that the only people with MySpace profiles were kids lying about their ages so that they could join. It was the only viable major social network anyone had back in its hey day. The profile pages were so customizable that they often looked hideous. It was easy to embed all kinds of sloppy code into elements of the profile page, too, making it a formidable security risk. Several times viruses and malware circulated around MySpace, infecting people’s computers and wreaking havoc with their profiles. If it hadn’t been for Facebook opening up its doors to people besides college students, that might have been all we have today. Thank goodness that changed.
The beginning of the Great Facebook Migration took place when non-college students were able to sign up. At first it was parents who wanted a way to keep in touch with their children who were off at college. Then, those parents began friending one another. Then friends friended friends, and families began to form networks for themselves, and ultimately that is how senior citizens came to be a major part of the online social networking scene. Grandmas and Grandpas everywhere have joined up so that they can connect with their kids and grandkids, and they’re pretty savvy users. But they also play a lot of social games. Social gaming among senior citizens, with games like Words with Friends, Solitaire, Texas Hold ‘Em, and Farmville, has really taken off. Social game developers like Zynga should be interested in this phenomenon, since all those people who are using their products during the day when younger folks are at work are driving advertising views in social media marketing.
Bet you never thought of that.
