Facebook (42%) was the #1 option in Q3 2011 for social logins among online users who opted to use a social network identity to speed up registration on sites across the web, according to December 2011 analysis from Janrain. Data from the analysis indicates that 29% of users turned to their Google accounts for login, with Yahoo (11%), Twitter (8%), and WindowsLive (4%) appealing to a far smaller subset. Among mobile users, Facebook and Google were tied for the most popular, each with 37% of logins, ahead of Yahoo (12%) and Twitter (10%).
Marketers ought to be encouraged: Facebook login also provides the most amount of profile data, offering 9 pieces of information that can be used to improve personalization, targeting and segmentation. And while Yahoo and MySpace both provide 8 pieces of data, Google only offers 4.
Google Identity Use Drops Y-O-Y
Although Facebook was the preferred social login in Q3, it did not always hold that distinction: in fact, Google was the preferred option throughout 2010, boasting almost 40% of logins throughout the year compared to roughly 25% for Facebook. However, Facebook experienced a 30% surge in share of social logins between Q4 2010 and Q1 2011, rising to 35% and overtaking Google, which suffered a corresponding 18% drop to 31% share.
Facebook Lead Biggest for Music Industry
The social identities preferred by users appear to vary significantly by industry: while 58% of those using social logins for music industry sites in Q3 2011 preferred to use their Facebook identities, the proportion using Facebook logins for the media and entertainment verticals was just 43%. Meanwhile, Google’s share was highest in the retail industry (29%), steadily climbing from 21% in Q2 2010. Within the retail vertical, Yahoo has experienced a drastic drop in share, from 26% in Q1 2010 to 12% in Q32011.
Facebook Top Sharing Destination, Too
Facebook led all sharing destinations in Q3 2011, with 54% of online users sharing comments, purchases, reviews, and other content from the web to the social network. Although almost 40% less sharing occurred on Twitter (34%), the network was still far ahead of Yahoo (7%), LinkedIn, and MySpace (both at 2%).
According to an infographic released in October 2011 by Unruly Media, shares on Twitter have grown an astounding 35,356% from inception, more than six times the 5,809% growth in Facebook Likes.
About the Data: Janrain analyzed the social login and social sharing preferences for online users across the 365,000 websites that use Janrain Engage.
