Glass Half Empty? A little look at social media stats...

I've always *hated* statistics, not because I am historically dreadful at Maths (I am), but because my A level fling with Sociology showed me just how dangerous statistics can be.

I came across this a couple of days ago. It's well worth a read but it isn't gospel.

As you can see, "Did you know over 50% of the UK population are on Facebook (sic)"

The implied reaction is 'well then, over 50% use Facebook therefore we must concentrate all our efforts there', and the language in the article is in the same vain. But is this just a case of the glass being half full?

Oooh, that's a little small, sorry!

The first thing that struck me about this statistic was that nearly 50% of the UK population DON'T use Facebook. Furthermore, taking only the ONLINE population that means that just over 37% aren't on Facebook at all. That is over a third.

You simply can't ignore that. If you focus just on Facebook you are ostracising just over a third of your potential online audience.

I love social media - I love everything about it. I love learning, I love the pace, I love the errors and I think ALL social media needs to be considered but, when it comes to the big three?* I think small business, big business, individuals and groups should have a full glass of social media cocktail and enjoy it.

Cheers!

*currently Facebook, Twitter and Linked In. Although this is set to change - that's exciting, isn't it?