More on Internet Use by Americans: Blogging Hits the Mainstream
April 30, 2006
Last week, I wrote about a new Pew Internet and American Life report on the increased use of the Internet for important decisions. Here’s a bit more Pew data that should be of interest if you’re thinking about creating an online presence for your mediation business. This data comes from a January 2005 report, so I can only imagine that the numbers have continued to increase:
- Blog readership shot up an eye-popping 58% in 2004.
- Over 6 million Americans got news and information fed to them through RSS aggregators.
- 27% of internet users say they read blogs, a 58% jump from the 17% only 11 months prior. This translates into 32 million Americans who were blog readers by the end of 2004.
- 12% of internet users have posted comments or other material on blogs, suggesting that the public is starting to catch on to ‘net interactivity.
- Blog readers are relatively well off financially (42% live in households earning over $50,000) and educated (39% have college or graduate degrees).
Pew concluded that “by the end of 2004 blogs had established themselves as a key part of online culture.” Are you blogging yet? If not, it should be part of your online marketing strategy for the coming year and beyond.
Americans Using Web for Major Decisions: Can They Find You?
April 24, 2006
The Pew Internet and American Life Project has released a report about the internet’s role in major life decisions:
The internet has become increasingly important to users in their everyday lives. It is also the case that for many of online Americans, the internet has become a crucial source of information at major moments and milestones in their lives.
Our surveys show that 45% of internet users, or about 60 million Americans, say that the internet helped them make big decisions or negotiate their way through major episodes in their lives in the previous two years.
Just another reminder about the ever-increasing importance of developing a solid web presence for your ADR practice.
