Twitter 2010 (Singapore)

Many companies that previously overlooked Twitter have to relook at it again. Since 2008, there is simply an increase in the number of users on Twitter, In a recent research done in April 2010, there are 105,779,710 users on Twitter and the numbers are definitely growing, especially in Asia.

From the report, in Singapore, there are 930,861 users, and with a population of 4.6 million people, this is easily 20% of your population. However, the majority of this number of users are Gen Y, and with growing affluence, this market segment does have significant buying power.

A research done by Michael Netzley on the behavior of Singaporeans online, conducted by students on their friends and family yield the following results.

His findings are as follows:

1. The results from 2010 are extremely similar to 2009. I am reading this consistency as corroborating evidence of our 2009 survey. Gen Y demonstrates that it is very different from Gen X (a generational shift here comparable which, in my mind, is comparable to the U.S.'s generational shift between Gen X and Baby Boomers). Internet users in Singapore continue to consume content and observe while showing comparatively little desire to post original content (UGC). In other words, remaining in the shadows appears to be common behavior. And as we have seen in other commercial reports, social networking and watching online videos are popular online activities.
2. Twitter grew 308.5% in 2010 as compared to 2009. Still, only 47% of netizens are using Twitter each week, so the impressive uptake must be kept in a proper perspective since slightly fewer than 1 out of 2 netizens here are using Twitter.


Still Singapore enjoyed moments of popularity when Orchard Road flooded on 16 June 2010. There were many blogs talking about the flood, and "Orchard Road" became a trending topic at 9:30am.

When there was a suicide at Bedok MRT Station a few weeks back, Twitter was also flooded with Singapore Tweets about Bedok MRT.

I do believe that there is incredible potential for Twitter in Singapore and leveraging on Twitter to spread word of mouth. If your target demographics is Gen Y, and you have snazzy interesting tweets, spreading the news using Twitter in Singapore may prove to be a breeze!

-- Robin Low

Social Media for Charities

I just did a presentation to train Charities to leverage on social media.

Enjoy,

Social Media for non-profits

View more presentations from Robin Low.

-- Robin Low

Social Media in Singapore

I've noticed social media activities increasing in Singapore. As a social media trainer, I have been getting more requests for training.

A report by ZDnet: S'pore firms top social media adoption has results from a survey done, showing that the number of businesses engaging in social media is much higher that the global average.

After interacting with numerous companies in Singapore on social media, I observed that the larger organizations which are bureaucratic cannot implement social media well as there are still many layers of management for a decision to be made. However, many SMEs are very nimble and with little help, many of them can manage their social media activities well.

I believe the number of users on social media is also on the rise, hence it is imperative for a business to get onto social media. However, there may be pitfalls if it is not managed properly as I've seen many companies still broadcasting offers and ads on social media channels, turning off their fans and followers.

In time, I believe that social media would be just like email today -- a form of communication. However, the early adopters may be much further ahead and gain much more of an edge over the competition.

-- Robin Low

Facebook overtakes Google in Internet Traffic in Singapore

Singapore: Social Networks continue to trump Search Engines



The popularity of social media is definitely growing as more and more people get onto Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. More companies are also getting into engaging the public with social media, with some doing very well, and others missing the point.

The high Internet penetration of about 75% in Singapore makes the growth of social media easy as there is much availability of 3G enabled devices. It is no wonder local companies are getting onto the bandwagon.

The major media channel -- XINMSN, a collaboration between Mediacorp and Microsoft is recently launched to try to get into video sharing and social media.

When Google (search engine) has lost out to Facebook, and with the popularity of social media still growing, it is imperative for corporations to think about social media policies and make social media one of their channels of communications.

With large companies, with plenty of market research getting onto social media, if your company is in South East Asia, shouldn't you jump on the bandwagon too?

-- Robin Low

LinkedIn group to promote industry and events

For B2B and promoting industrial events, LinkedIn is probably one of the more focused social media tools an event organizer can leverage on, but what exactly makes it so good?

I'm helping a friend who is running an event management company that promotes the use of new sustainable energy for vehicles. A group was started before the event next month and got slightly more than 50 members now.

After getting used to the different arsenals you can leverage on LinkedIn, I have some observations.

In LinkedIn, the people that join your group are usually from the industry, and most of them have a lot of knowledge. There is sometimes no replies, even in big groups if the topic is not interactive enough, simply because a lot of people who join the groups are just "readers" and not a lot of them will be active enough to post discussions.

Compared to Facebook, many users do not check their LinkedIn everyday. Many people I connect with check LinkedIn once a week. In terms of going into groups and reading or posting discussions, people check even less.

Suggested from fellow social media enthusiasts, I started a Facebook group on the same topic and cross promoted the groups on both LinkedIn and Facebook. And testing some links posted, I find that people are much more active on Facebook than LinkedIn. However, many people may still feel uncomfortable to join groups in Facebook, and they are more likely to participate in discussions on a LinkedIn group.

The idea sort of worked as whenever there is new information, I post on LinkedIn and Facebook, providing multiple touchpoints for group members, and members do get involved slightly more as there are multiple places to get to the discussions and news.

I hope to get more data on this new hybrid way of using a Facebook Group to draw people to the LinkedIn group for discussions, will provide more information soon.

-- Robin Low