Social media 'can be used virtually anywhere'

15:00 28th May 2010

The rise of smartphones means that social media can be used "virtually anywhere", an expert has stated.

Jennifer L Jacobson, director of public relations at consumer electronics review website Retrevo.com and social media author, explained that this makes websites such as Twitter and Facebook "ultra-portable".

She said: "This portability is part of what makes social media so available and at times addictive."

This means that digital marketing professionals may need to ensure websites are properly optimised for mobile phones in the future, as well as placing more of a focus on social media marketing.

Ms Jacobson added that the social media website market is still some way from being saturated, explaining many people have accounts on sites such as Twitter but do not yet use them regularly.

She said: "There are also people who use social media from their computers, but have yet to figure out how to access it from their smartphones."

Ms Jacobson was speaking following research by Retrevo, which found that almost half of all users of social media websites such as Facebook use their accounts while they are in bed.

More than 15 per cent even stated that they get their morning news from social media websites rather than from more traditional channels such as the radio or the television.