9 more astonishing social media statistics

Have you been wondering if your target demographic is using social media? The answer is yes! Not only are more boomers, seniors and affluent consumers using social media, they're sharing information. If you're not on the social media bandwagon yet, you should be. Here are some data to prove it.

Social-media users are interacting with financial* institutions:

1. Ninety percent of affluent consumers ($100,000 to $1 million not including primary residence) use social media. Forty-four percent of them engage specifically with financial institutions.
2. Forty-five percent of affluent investors consider Facebook a source for investment and financial needs, while 42 percent would go first to LinkedIn. 
3. Sixty-three percent of affluent investors take action after using social media to learn about financial products and services.
4. Forty-five percent of U.S. adults with Twitter accounts are interested in interacting with financial services firms via that social-media site.
5. Of U.S. investors who opened a full-service brokerage account last year, 40 percent researched their choices online.
6. In 2012, 62 percent of advisors with LinkedIn accounts gained new clients through the site.
7. Of that group, 32 percent used LinkedIn to bring in $1 million or more in managed assets.
8. Slightly more than one-third of adult Twitter users in the U.S. agreed with the statement "I often recommend financial products and firms I like to my friends and acquaintances." This is compared to 21 percent of online adults overall.
9. Fifty-four percent of ultra-high-net-worth investors ($5 million to $25 million not including primary residence) between the ages of 55 and 64 use LinkedIn for financial communication and research.

The evidence is staggering: Social media is giving financial advisors access to a pool of affluent potential clients who want to work with them. Even more important, social-media sites are creating the contexts and platforms for financial conversations and information-sharing to take place. Don't get left behind; opportunity awaits you online!

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Amy McIlwain is a professional speaker on social media and President of Financial Social Media, an online marketing firm specializing in the financial industry. She can be reached through her website www.financialsocialmedia.com and on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.