What People Really Want vs. What They Share on Social Media

Take a look at someone’s stream of social media updates. Can you determine what they really want out of life?

Now ask them point blank about their aspirations. Will you get the same answers?

Maybe not, according to the comparison below. Social media monitoring company NetBase put 365 days worth of its own data about online conversations up against a recent Harris poll that asked, “What is the one thing you want right now?”

The results show that people are generally emotional sharers when it comes to social media, but they are much more logical when asked a direct question. For instance, 80% of the “I want _____” updates were about food, whereas 50% of the survey responses were related to personal finance (money, financial security, a new car).

Interestingly, when comparing the responses of men and women, there is slightly more overlap when listening to social than when asking survey questions.

Check out the comparison below, along with some additional social consumer insights from NetBase.