Understanding Users of Social Networks

Silverhorne, S. (2010). Understanding users of social networks. Retrieved from http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/6156.html

This article outlines a study done by Harvard Business School professor Mikolaj Jan Piskorski on how people use social networks, such as Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter and how businesses need to market its goods to the users of these networks. The study shows that men and women use these networks differently and that pictures that are posted are the main attraction for the users. He states that social network users are looking to fulfill social failures in the real world. From a business standpoint, Piskorski says that social network users do not respond to ads that require them to click-through to another site. He states that a good marketing strategy would be to find ways to solve social failures in the offline world. The article is very shallow on the subject but does point managers and marketers in a direction that should be explored more thoroughly.