Division of Demographics Between Google+ and Pinterest

There's no denying that certain services cater to certain demographics. For example, one of the freshest social networks on the scene, Google+, has managed to rope in more male users than female. On the other hand, Pinterest has reported that a shocking 97% of its users happen to be female. These can be surprising statistics, but what exactly causes a social network to be more appealing for one gender over another? What are the mechanics (if any) used by corporations to lure in certain types of users?

Tech Geeks on Google+

There are many factors that can be attributed to the strong sway that Google+ and Pinterest have on the types of users that they continually draw in. To be specific, Google has always been known to draw in a technologically-focused crowd that has the tendency to be mostly male. When Google rolled out its own social network, Google+, it was expected that the user gender statistic would translate over into the social networking aspect of the company. What's even as interesting is that after a report was released by Website-Monitoring concerning career demographics of Google+ users, it was found that the second most popular occupation/profession was the software engineer - next to the student.

Likewise, Pinterest also seems to attract more female users than males, and this can be attributed to many factors. After a quick run-through of the site for a non-user, it's most obvious that the site centers around photo-sharing. Additionally, the most popular categories seem to be fashion, food, adorable animals, and silly pictures. Because women are more naturally interested in shopping, fashion, recipes, and communicating with friends/family, it is the perfect site for any female that shares any of these interests.

Pinning, Duh.

Pinterest's explosion in interest by females across the globe also has a lot do with the simplicity of the site as well. The registration form is quite short if you're looking to start "pinning," and setting up your "pinboards" and adding things to them is as easy as a click of a button. Additionally, the "news feed," if you will, is an ingenious idea whereas all recent "pins" by friends are arranged in a mosaic-like formation whereas the ones nearest the top are the most recent. If you see something you like in your feed, you can simply click it and repin it onto one of your own pinboards. This sheer simplicity makes it easy for users to quickly browse and repin while leaving a lot of other time for other activities or duties in their lives. Additionally, it's just another great way for users to stay connected with their friends and family.

There's no doubt that neither Google+ or Pinterest have an equal balance of gender in users, and it can mainly be attributed to appeal and interests. However, other sites like Facebook see a pretty even cut between the male and female gender. In Facebook's case, women outnumber men by a tiny margin, but the pretty even split can be attributed to gearing the site for both types of users.

About The Guest Author Juliana

Juliana is a Social Media Analyst that specializes in small business and web hosting provider InMotion Hosting, based in southern California, Los Angeles. You can follow her on Twitter @JulianaPayson.