Blogs, social networks used by the wealthy

Marketers wanting to make inroads to wealthy clientele should target blogs and social networks. That, according to a new study which indicates that the wealthy in America are interacting on social networking sites and reading blogs more than the general public.

According to a recent survey from the Luxury Institute, a full 76% of wealthy Americans are reading blogs. That is up from 57% in the 2005 study. Also interesting is that more wealthy Americans are blogging themselves (24%), up from 18% in 2005.

Compare that with the median income Americans and it is clear that those with more money appear to be more interested in technological advances. According to the report, only 25% of the general American population read blogs and only 9% maintain their own blogs.

Instant messaging is also a mode of communication that more wealthy Americans are using (55%) than the general public (39%). Also, 31% of wealthy Americans are active on a social networking site compared with only 16% of the general public.

For the study, the Luxury Institute polled 1,000 web users making $150,000 or more each year.

This is a clear indication that marketers with high-end merchandise need to accommodate the wealthy in their online advertising campaigns. Rather than simply purchases display ads on supposed-high-end websites, marketers may get a better response from advertising within the social mediums - advertising within high-traffic blogs or on social networks.