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Consumer 'social media fatigue' setting in already

The survey reveals continued localisation of usage, whereby certain country-specific social characteristics dictate preferences. However, large global brands such as Facebook are making headway in countries where they have not historically been strong.

Gartner surveyed 6,295 respondents, between the ages of 13 and 74, in 11 developed and developing markets in December 2010 and January 2011. Consumers were asked about their use of and opinions about social media sites with the aim of examining usage trends and how enthusiastic users were about social media in general across a range of countries.

"Overall, our survey underlined respondents' continued enthusiasm for social media," said Charlotte Patrick, principal research analyst for Gartner. "Teenagers and those in their twenties were significantly more likely to say that they had increased their usage, while at the other end of the 'enthusiasm spectrum', the age-related differences were much less marked, with fairly consistent percentages saying that they were using social media less."

Of the respondents, 24% said they use their favourite social media site less than when they first signed up. These respondents tended to be in segments that have a more practical view of technology. But 37% of respondents, particularly those in younger age groups and more tech-savvy segments, said they were using their favourite site more.

"The trend shows some social media fatigue among early adopters, and the fact that 31% of Aspirers [younger, more mobile, brand-conscious consumers] indicated that they were getting bored with their social network is a situation that social media providers should monitor, as they will need to innovate and diversify to keep consumer attention," said Brian Blau, research director for Gartner.

"Branded content needs to be kept fresh and must be able to capture people's attention instantly. The new generation of consumers is restless and short on attention span, and a lot of creativity is needed to make a meaningful impact," Blau added.

Gartner analysts also examined whether the type of social media site respondents used affected their enthusiasm. Given that 24% of respondents indicated that they were using their main social site "a little less" or "a lot less" than when they first started using it, respondents were asked what negative factors might be influencing their decision.

Although none of the options given to the respondents resonated extremely highly, 33% said they were concerned about online privacy. Attitudes to privacy were also age-related, with teenagers citing privacy concerns significantly less often than older respondents (22% of teenagers agreed or strongly agreed that privacy concerns were decreasing their enthusiasm, against an average of 33%).

"The level of consumer concern around privacy will require ongoing vigilance for brands concerning customer opt-in and education. Lessons should be learned from the likes of Facebook as they test the boundaries of consumer tolerance in search of more revenue," Patrick warned.

From a geographical point of view, some of the more mature social media markets - Japan, the UK and the US - corresponded to the global average trend - with roughly 40% of respondents using the site more than when they first started, 40% using it the same amount, and 20% using it less. Markets where enthusiasm was higher included South Korea and Italy, where nearly 50% of respondents said they used their social media sites more. At the other end of the spectrum, countries with the most respondents saying they used the site less included Brazil and Russia - both with between 30 and 40% of respondents exhibiting less enthusiasm.

The complete survey report, entitled 'User Survey Analysis: Trends in Consumer Use of Social Media', can be purchased directly from Gartner's web site - click here (costing US$2,495 at the time of writing).

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