The document discusses new ways of advertising on social networks. It notes that some sites are growing rapidly each year and capturing niche audiences. Social networks allow permanent connections between users and are used primarily for communication between connections. Statistics are presented on user numbers and engagement for various social networks and sites in Russia. The potential for users to generate and share content is discussed, as well as strategies for embedding advertising and branded content into user generated content and communications on social networks.

1. New ways of advertising on social networks Fedor Virin , research director , Mail.ru.

2. Mail.ru Leader of the Russian internet. One of the leaders in all Russian-speaking countries Project Monthly Reach, September 2008 '000 In population 12-54 Portal 15 938 36,2% Mail e-mail.-service 13 681 31,1% Main Page 13 234 30,1% My@Mail.ru Social Net 7 827 17,8% Photo@Mail.ru Photo hosting 6 291 14,3% News@Mail.ru news aggregator 4 877 11,1% [email_address] Search engine 5 170 11,8%

3. World changes At present time there are some sites with growth rate over tens or hundred percent a year , i.e. their dynamics leave behind the dynamics of total internet audience . Most of new fast growing sites found their places at a niche , which didn’t exist several years ago . Rating of most visited sites lost its half during the last three years .

4. World changes Modern stars grow faster then Google , however their coverage is much less as compared with the leaders. The picture changes if we look at hits . Here we can see a real competition for audience attention .

5. For what : Social network is… ? Social network is a system of permanent connections between people . The main purpose of social networks is a communication by existing connections , other words social network is an Instant Messenger . Thus social network is a number of profiles and connections between them . Intermediate variants : Dating ( there are profiles, but connection is not permanent ); Blogs + Foto/Video Hostings ( there are profiles and connections , but they are one-sided and the communications between them are one-sided, too ); These services have a bit different functional and, at once, a completely another scheme of research . Thus , today social networks are : Social network , as : Facebook, Odnoklassniki.ru , [email_address] , etc. Instant Messengers : Live Messenger, Mail.ru Agent, ICQ, jabber. MMO-games , they are the same social networks : there are profiles and connections , they are permanent . However a small amount of people ( units of percent ) are the players in ММО- games .

6. For what : What does it look like in statistics ? Source: Gemius Audience/FOM| march 2008 - TEST DATA. , Stat.Mail.ru, RBC.ru Sites Visitors (mln) Hits per visitor (monthly) Time per visitor (monthly) Number of sessions per visitor (monthly) vkontakte.ru 9,4 1618 13:09:54 24,1 odnoklassniki.ru 10,3 604 5:34:45 19,1 Mamba 3,9 302 3:37:57 9,5 loveplanet.ru 2,5 148 2:46:08 9,1 Мой Мир@Mail.ru 9,4 10 0 1 : 21 : 28 8 ,4 24open.ru 1,4 73 0:46:05 5,9 liveinternet.ru 5 40 0:31:34 3,0 photofile.ru 1,7 38 0:20:32 2,6 Livejournal 4,9 29 0:53:46 3,8 radikal.ru 1,8 17 0:20:07 3,3 moikrug.ru 2 15 0:12:29 1,6 vspomni.ru 0,7 2 0:00:42 1,3 Mail.ru Agent 1200 QIP 1000

7. Users create content Distribution of digital cameras, scanners , telephones with cameras , dictaphones , digital video-cameras etc . lead to avalanche-like growth of user content . Simplification of technologies and interfaces let us public this content in web easily . Today you don’t have to know more then how to connect your camera with computer and load the information. Expansion of wideband connection makes it even easier . Internet audience use opportunity of publication in an actively way. Broadband Don’t know Data TNS Gallup Media

8. 61% Moscovers use at least one social network ( actually the ratio is bigger , because TNS does not measure vkontakte.ru and western networks) . The situation in Russia is the same : 62% of respondents during an autumn survey said , that they use at least one social network . For all that, more then a third uses several networks at the same time . Usage of social networks Mail.ru , MASMI , november 2007 г. Number of used social networks At least one At least two At least three At least four Over four Don’t use TNS Gallup Media. Web Index. February 2008. Moscow 12-54 years old

9. Usage of social networks Average number of friends per person is not big . For most groups it counts 5-7 friends for [email_address] . If a network includes more participants, the number can rise to 10-20 per person . Of course , there are always users with thousands friends , but for majority it is not. Data for project [email_address] , February 2008 Average number of friends Female Male

10. Usage of social networks It is important that, the older a man is, the more his/her connections are diversified . The same situation we can see in social networks and common conversations . Just as it is, the range of association changes . Data for project [email_address] , February 2008

11. Using UGC Increasing value and count of self content Adding user content increase the information about goods and services , облегчая коммуникацию с целевым аудиториям . Users see marks of other and make conclusions, having or not agreed with them . It is applicated to any mass goods and services, which can have individual characters and relation. It is important for a user to have an intent to comment his/her buying . It is important to follow « the rule of beggar »: presence and a nature of first response and the balance in user’s responses. It is important to let user leave his response by an easy form, and to induce him to do it .

12. Using UGC Providing user with information the can publish Usually users don’t have anything interesting to public, instead they republic any interesting information . Then it’s important to make that information seem interesting for them. Examples: a huge amount of video files which are publicized in advertka (leading Russian community for advertisers) and then multiply in other blogs . It is an example if a virus marketing. On the other hand – see Vedomosti.ru proposing bloggers to republic any information with a link, performing all the necessary features.

13. Using UGC Embedding to user content « Performing » yourself like a user, masking your content under a user’s one you can sparkle on their interest for new forms of communication , getting a virus effect: posting trailers, corporate blogs and other . The problem is about good creative content, otherwise it won’t interest a user. Making high-quality content can appear to be big problem. Though, there are some outstanding cases which users take actively.

14. Embedding to user communication : Profiles We can play a role of common users, to take the same level and to enter their communication.

15. МТ S for adult Embedding to user communication : Virus Honda Accord QashQai car games Video advertising made with humor or staggering by its content can spread through Internet extremely fast: it is resent by e-mail, cited in blogs, posted on sites, or as I do – posting to my reports.

16. Embedding to user communication : Virus 1 advertising panel € 8000 as total costs, including costs for creating a site 35 thousand of users a day at the top your campaign 3200 publications in blogs About 1 mln people have seen this site or pictures from it

17. Demographic targeting

18. Cross targeting demographic and interests