According to a new U.S. study undertaken by the social network LinkedIn, social media sites are utilised by around 90% of mass affluent consumers – those falling in at the higher end of the mass market.

The study indicated that people living financially comfortable existences – or more specifically, those who possess investable assets worth between $100k and $1m – are commonly interacting with their favourite brands through the social networks they use.

When mass affluent consumers were asked about the main reasons why they liked to interact with brands through social media, the majority said it was because of the professional opportunities that social media interaction offers. Half of the respondents said they used social media to network with other professionals, and around 33% said they believe social media offers them a chance to easily access professional content.

In addition to this, around 44% of the respondents said they openly engage with various financial institutions on social networks, and around one in three actively and regularly check the profile pages of financial institutions for any relevant and interesting written content.

This stands as further evidence towards the increasing need for businesses to get connected with consumers socially – as well as the need to provide quality content for consumers to digest. Written content, when interesting and engaging, stands a good chance of being shared and increasing traffic to a company’s main site.

Jennifer Grazel, the lead executive of financial services at LinkedIn, said people using LinkedIn have a “value exchange” and share a sense of trust with the social platform. She believes this is part of the reason why a variety of financial companies have chosen to adopt LinkedIn for more than just standard ads.

Through social platforms, businesses are able to engage closely with consumers and provide content relevant to their specific industries.

Richard Bell

Richard has a First in English Literature and Creative Writing, and has experience writing fiction and short stories (which he has published both online and in magazines).