Number of Millionaires on Facebook Doubled in One Year

In its report, “Social Media and Affluent Households,” millionaires are defined as having a net worth of $1 million to $5 million, not including primary residence (NIPR). Forty-seven percent of ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) investors, those with a net worth of $5 million to $25 million NIPR, and 55% of the mass affluent, who have a net worth of $100,000 to $1 million NIPR, are also using Facebook.

Blogs are another good way to reach the wealthiest Americans, Spectrem says.  Nearly one-third (30%) of UHNW investors say they either read or would read blogs by trusted financial advisers. The percentage is 20% for millionaires and 21% for the mass affluent.

“Learning how to effectively use social media and financial blogs is critical to the future success of financial services firms.   Providers who fall behind run the risk of frustrating their investors and losing customers,” said George H. Walper, Jr., President of Spectrem Group.

In addition to Facebook, LinkedIn is also popular among wealthy investors, with 19% of millionaires, 26% of UHNW investors and 22% of the mass affluent using the service.  Twitter usage was smaller, with 3% of millionaires, 6% of UHNW investors and 5% of the mass affluent using this service.

The Spectrem eZine “Social Media and Affluent Households” is based on online and telephone surveys of the financial decision-makers of 1,294 households with a net worth of $1 million to $5 million, not including primary residence (NIPR), 439 households with a net worth of $5 million to $25 million (NIPR) and 1,269 households with a net worth of $100,000 to $1 million (NIPR).The surveys were conducted in November 2010 and June 2011.