Social Media Examiner ran a great piece by content marketing expert Patricia Redsicker on July 23rd about Digital Trends for 2013.

Some interesting research results from the 2013 Infinite Dial Report by Edison Research reveal that internet usage, including online radio and TV, is on the rise over a multitude of platforms, and that the biggest social media network usage increases are from the 55 and older set, a prime target for many authors as these folks tend to have more time to read, and the desire to share what they like about their favorite books.

There’s no doubt that the majority of your readership, just like the majority of the population, is now consuming content and learning about new books online. And in reading the report ourselves we saw other potentially interesting statistics for authors. Click on each image to enlarge:

Of these sites, Facebook remains the “Big Daddy” but others are gaining traction. And specifically among authors and readers, Goodreads.com has just passed its 20 millionth member mark, showing us the awesome power of social networking for all you glittering literati.

Which Social Media Networks Are Best?

Your other social media networks of choice (in addition to the aforementioned Facebook and Goodreads, which are mandatory!) will depend somewhat on your readership:

• Twitter trends towards a younger crowd, though more and more folks are exposed to Twitter streams every day through mainstream media.
• LinkedIn may seem to towards the more serious social media user (think non-fiction and business books) though we’re finding that LinkedIn’s groups are connecting our authors with both new individual readers and the opportunities to put their books in front of larger groups, i.e. associations and clubs.
• Google+ is an overall great site, though still confusing to new users. The “power” of the site of course is that what you post there, because, well, it’s Google, is also indexed by Google, which makes what you post (i.e. the link to your latest blog) that much easier to discover.

So, before we move off author social networking for a bit and into a week of SEO and keyword topics, tell us: What’s your favorite social network and where/how have you connected with the most readers online?

To view/download the report from Edison Research: Infinite Dial 2013: Navigating Digital Platforms

To read the latest on Goodreads.com: Goodreads Grows to 20 Million Readers