Three Minds On Digital Marketing @ Organic

18% of people start their search for new information online via social sites.

It's one of those statistics that takes a minute to sink in, and then a whole bevy of new questions rolls out. We don't blink twice when people mention that they start their hunt for new information via search engines, or even portal sites. But is social media really starting to become the primary vehicle for content discovery?

The Nielsen study is vague, and had many of us scratching our heads as to what the implications were and whether the stat was over-representative or even under-representative of reality. And... ultimately, WHAT are these people using social media to search for?

Is this number accurate? Too high? Too low?

"Interesting... this site lumped Wikipedia in as a social media site. While I would argue that, while from a strictly techie pov it is one, Wikipedia is fundamentally and qualitatively different than MySpace or Facebook. Removing Wikipedia takes social media sites down to 9%." David Freedman

"I'm wondering if when people think about 'searching' if they only associate finding information via the Facebook or MySpace search bar. Are they taking into account how often they put a question like "Where should I eat out in Philadelphia tonight?" into their status update? I think more and more people are using that in replacement of the same search on Google." Marta Strickland

"I'd also like to add that not all blogs are 'social' media. Many heavily visited blogs are professionally written, edited, and maintained. Gizmodo, for instance, might be a starting point for people who are searching for reviews of electronic products." Fang-Yu Lin

The question of "how much" is interesting... but we really want to know WHAT people are using social media to search for.

"I'd be more curious about what the actual queries were within that 18%. My assumption would be that there is a specific type of information people would think most easily found by combing social media. If I'm looking for a great local restaurant, salon, consumer advice, parenting? I'd trust my 'friends' But I'd also just as easily trust a more filtered search experience. There have always been corners of the internet that house experts of one type or another, I don't think they necessarily have to be within my social reach." Nick Sternberg

"I, too, am more interested in the types of queries and find it strange that it wasn't highlighted as part of the study. I might search for opinion-based info on Facebook or Twitter, but I'd look to more reputable sources for fact-based info. I wonder, too, how many people don't realize Wikipedia is public-generated (especially in the older set) and take it as fact?" Sandy Marsh

"I see people making major decisions based on groups of people who might carry similar convictions as they do, though they've never met in person. Is this 'trusted resource' making it easier to sway others into your way of thinking? Or is it giving consumers more diversity in information in order to make more informed decisions? I'd like to think the latter. But you always have to consider the source. What is their motive?" Sarah Jo Sautter

In the end, what do we do with this new information?
While Nielsen didn't give us any insight into what people are using social media to search for, they did throw in this pretty relevant statistic... 26% find that there is too much information online.

Marketers need to consider that perhaps the reason why their audience is turning away from Google and even their brand site and turning to Facebook is to get information is because there is TOO much opinion out there, too much information to sort through. People are turning to their peers, their friends, and "experts" the know and trust to get their information.

And fairly soon... if you aren't part of that conversation, no one will know you exist.

Thanks to Nick Sternberg, Sandy Marsh, Sarah Jo Sautter, Fang-Yu Lin, and David Freedman for their thoughts.

Marta Strickland