No … I’m tired of marketers’ and researchers’ ploys to convince me and my clients that Social Media only applies to white female moms with HHI of $75K+. This may sound like a ridiculous thing to be fed up with, but hear me out.

1. While the fact that here 300 million users on Facebook and there are more females (55%) using the site than males is consistently parroted,  the thing that is often overlooked is that 45% of those users are going to be male. When I made a mock Facebook ad targetting males in the U.S. 25-54, 24,722,340 users came up as eligible to receive my Facebook ad. 24,722,340! How it the world is this an insignificant number to other marketers? Having just a fraction of that number for fans creates an opportunity for some of the most targeted and meaningful advertising in the world today!
2. According to a recent study by Liberty Mutual, two very interesting facts about men’s online behavior include the following:
   • With the exception of Facebook, men are generally more likely than women to use their other social media accounts at least a few times a week, particularly Twitter.
   • MySpace: 35 percent of men vs. 26 percent of women, LinkedIn: 25 percent of men vs. 16 percent of women, and Twitter: 53 percent of men vs. 38 percent of women
   • Dads are more likely than moms to have a MySpace account or a Twitter account, 43 percent vs. 29 percent and 50 percent vs. 32 percent, respectively.
3. And, lastly, simply perusing the LinkedIn site, I came across their demographic breakdown of users—51% male, HHI 100K+, 35–50+. Don’t know about your marketing experience, but the mere fact that there is a single place where this demographic comes to talk about all things corporate and business-related, where I don’t have to do any schmoozing, is the greatest gift I’ve been given in a long time. One could equate it to finding the Holy Grail.

Moral of the story: Men are on social networking sites. They have different objectives, different patterns, but are on there nonetheless. So, please, stop assuming that every online tactic has to be centered around shopping moms. Because the truth is, the great success of those campaigns is only because coupons are the big rage in the “economy today.” It’s the only reason I joined half the Fan Pages I did, and I’ve not visited again … NOT ONCE.

So, I’m begging, stop all this bleating about mom, and take a look at half the world your advertising is missing out on by making assumptions rather than looking at the facts—men use social media. Get used to it.

So, while knee-deep in indexing products within the grocery, home, software, and health & beauty categories, I began to wonder what would happen if I indexed the popular sites YouTube, MySpace, and Facebook against each other. Taking information from Mediamark Research & Intelligence® (MRI), Google analytics and other special goodness (we’ll never tell!), our system plotted these guys on a scale of 0 to 100 in what we call “premiumness.”

Not all too shockingly, MySpace came in as the least premium with a score of 5 out of 100, while Facebook ranked at 49, and YouTube at a whopping 96! Among other factors, the interesting details that surface include the knowledge that 49% less information is consumed on MySpace than it’s counterparts. Also, 45% of MySpace users also use Facebook, which, if talking about cream cheese, we’d consider to be a brand loyalty problem.

The data also reveals interesting trends in the buy styles of these media consumers—20% of YouTube users fall into the category of “Buyers of the Best.” This generally denotes that they are brand loyal and tend to be willing to spend that extra dollar to get it. YouTube users also tend to have a higher overall income and have the most loyal following in incomes of $200K+.

While all this data is wonderful, how do we apply it to marketing in the real world? It may not seem too far-fetched from our current assumptions that YouTube is pandemic, Facebook is getting there (if China will let them), and MySpace is just plain sad. However, when structuring a marketing plan for a brand that utilizes these three modes of social media transportation, it is emperical evidence that it does matter which brands advertise where.

For instance, even though my last post indicated that 18–22 year olds are now purchasing more specialty food items, a such brand should not inherently push all their efforts into a MySpace campaign. We learn in this study that not only are MySpace subscribers less loyal to brands, they also aren’t the 18–22 year olds with the cash to spend. Also, they tend to lean toward coupon purchases, which most specialty foods cannot afford to do.

So, while this exercise is not 100% fool-proof—and is done mainly as an illustration (we charge for the real thing!)—it does convey the general idea that not all entities within a category can be premium. There are definite factors determined by the consumer’s perceptions, behaviors and experiences that shape what your brand is. And doesn’t it just make you the least bit curious to find out how premium your brand is?

Last night, while watching my recording of Wednesday’s So You Think You Can Dance (yes, I’m one of those people), the show’s host introduced me to a group called “The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers.” While this seems like a fun name, I was hardly going to believe what a TV show produced by American Idol aficionado Nigel Lythgoe told me. Like any consumer, I had to consider the source.

But as the music began and I saw the opening moments of the performance, there was an immediate sense of pride in making the right decision to stick with the program. The time and effort put into each execution. The attention to detail! They were fantastic. Beyond excellent. They were extraordinary. And I proceeded to go online and watch the YouTube version of the performance below 5 more times that night. And then a few more today.

There were other performers on the show who were great. It’s a dance competition, for heaven’s sake! But these performers stood out because they have created this product, this “brand,” with creativity, something distinguishable, something unique, and, hopefully not to be too trite, something premium. And not every brand can play at this level, but when articulated and executed well, the consumer is hooked. And living up to your claims defines consumer retention.

So, brand managers, before settling with any creative or strategic execution, ask yourself a few things—what is it about your brand that is truly extraordinary? What is it that your product does within its category that is beyond normal? And how can you tell that story in a like fashion? Articulate and demonstrate these assets, and your customers will develop a sense of pride and belief in your brand, as well. And though it may seem basic, it works. Trust us. We at WD create such extraordinary every day.

Perhaps you have started a Facebook page, but your only fans are a handful of employees from the marketing department. Have you posted a video to YouTube, but the only comments are from your brother? Why?

Think about this…what would happen if you walked out into the middle of Times Square and started talking. You didn’t take anyone with you. You didn’t tell anyone you would be there. Who would care? Who would stop and talk to you? Easy. Nobody. What you start saying may be interesting, relevant and credible, yet you most likely won’t get an audience.

In some respects, online conversations are no different. If you try to start one without making a concentrated effort to tell people, most likely your efforts will fall on deaf ears. As Marsha Lindsay points out, good ole traditional media can be very useful in alerting your audience that a conversation is happening. As she points out, even for brands as universally recognized as Nike, their most successful online efforts have been introduced at least in part through traditional mass media outlets such as TV. Or, consider how your targeted direct marketing efforts can work together nicely with social media to help you engage your audience.

So once you get people to your home in your social network(s) of choice, then what? Keep the interest of your growing audience with contests, games, surveys, forums, invitations to contribute and relevant, interesting content. Listen to what they have to say to you and, more importantly, to each other. Use different types of media to keep things fresh. Give a framework for discussion, but don’t dominate the conversation. Treat your audience like people. You know, be social.

What have you found to be most successful in growing and maintaining your online communities?

This morning the internet is atwitter with the story about Sony Australia’s latest PS3 and Sony Bravia campaign. They decided to basically hurl a PS3 into a brand new Sonia Bravia in the hopes of getting the word out about their recent promotion—buy a new Bravia and get a PS3 thrown in. From the video below, you can see it’s pretty cool, from a viral point of view … and the slow motion really takes it to that dramatic place. You can find the whole story here.

However, one has to wonder, will distributing a video where you are literally destroying the product you are promoting actually result in sales? What exactly were Sony executives thinking when they approved the idea to shatter their very expensive product in front of the masses and then do everything they can to get people to watch? Because every consumer wants to think about their $1000 tv shattering before their eyes.

It is, of course, really cool to watch things getting smashed. And the success of the video and story has already made waves, but at what cost to the premium status of the product and brand?