Top Social Networking Sites for March 2009

Nielsen has reported on the usage for March 2009 on the social networking sites. If you remember yesterday I reported that online retailers receive more traffic from social networking sites than paid search, therefore understanding which are the important sites can help increase traffic to your website.

This data relates to the US and the top 6 sites were

1. Facebook – 69,151,000
2. Myspace – 55,914,000
3. Classmates - 16,457,000
4. Linked In - 15,815,000
5. Twitter – 13,858,000
6. Reunion - 6,678,000

What strikes me is that although there is a great vibe about Twitter – and remember I am a huge fan – I think there is a tendency to forget MySpace. The other factor which struck me was the difference in time spent on the sites. Facebook enjoys 3hrs 16 mins 8 secs compared to MySpace at 1 hr 29 mins 8 secs. Linked In and Twitter are both at the 12 minute level.

For business, this shows the importance and the value potential customers place on connections, on personal friendship. It is a value they enjoy in their life, it is that needs to tap into by earning the right to be a trusted friend.