7 Tips for Dealing With Upset Facebook Fans

What do you do when you’ve just received a less-than-complimentary Facebook wall post from someone who likes your business (or used to, so it seems)?

The customer could have a simple complaint, or be so upset he’s gone on the offensive, making sure you and the rest of your community knows he’s angry.

Your next steps are key to retaining not only the business of the angry customer, but the business of other fans who like your page as well.

#1: Respond no matter what
It’s vitally important that the complaints and issues your fans pose on your wall are addressed. Inactivity on your part will appear as though you’re trying to ignore the issue and sweep it under the rug. Being unresponsive does nothing more than incite more anger and increase the chance the user will come back with even more angry wall posts.

Moreover, your community can see that angry post. If you don’t reply, it appears as though you are unconcerned with customer support, which can be detrimental to your reputation.

A response that illustrates respect and understanding for customers’ concerns will indicate your intention to rectify any problems. By addressing this upset fan, Newegg is demonstrating that they value their fans’ opinions—even the negative ones.

#2: Be patient and understanding
In dealing with upset fans, you must remember that you are closer to your industry, products and services than they are. What may seem like basic, common knowledge to you is often foreign to the end user.

Take a step back and put yourself in your customer’s shoes. This can go a long way in understanding why he or she is frustrated. It may not be your company’s fault that the customer is upset.

Whether or not the fault lies on your end, a simple apology will go a long way in keeping the customer’s business. Instead of trying to figure out where the blame lies, turn upset fans into loyal customers by making their experience better.

#3: Contact the Customer Privately
Sending a private message or email to the customer opens up more options for you to address his or her complaints. The goal here is to extend some sort of token letting the customer know you’re sorry he or she is dissatisfied with your company, and you’re willing to make it right. Whether that’s offering the number of the manager’s direct phone line or a discount off the next purchase, moving the conversation from public to private allows you to give the customer a personal touch that signals you care.

However, offering things like direct lines and special discounts publicly can lead to other people creating problems just to get that special treatment, so it’s best to keep these practices off the wall.

#4: Consider asking the fan to remove the post
Say you’ve discussed the issue privately, any problems have been straightened out, and the faultfinder is, once again, your happy customer.

While your wall is an integral part of your web presence, the customer may be unaware of how important it really is to your reputation. If he or she is satisfied with the resolution you’ve reached and grateful for the time you’ve spent making things right, there’s nothing wrong with privately asking the person to remove the post. Most of the time, he or she will remove the angry wall post.

#5: Respond back to the original post
As a general rule, you, the Facebook page admin, should not remove negative posts. Not everyone is going to have a glowing review of your product or company. Social media users know this, and if they see nothing but positive comments, they’ll assume your company is deleting the bad comments.

If you don’t feel comfortable asking your customer to remove the post, you do have the option of publicly responding back to that post. Express happiness in the resolution you’ve reached and thankfulness for her business. Even a negative post can be a good thing, as long as the last comment is positive. Your reputation among your community will soar when they see how well you take care of your customers.

#6: Let your community respond
Letting your community respond for you is really the end result of all the earlier steps. It requires copious time, energy and patience with your fans, and a fantastic product. After you’ve engaged with your fans for a period of time by answering questions and offering support, you’ll notice that your fans will be more active on your page, even to the point of assisting each other.

What’s great about getting this community support is that there’s a genuine credibility when fans endorse your business for you. They become your eager virtual support agents, answering questions and solving problems before you have a chance to. But this is a level you can only achieve if you’ve nurtured and supported your community.

The Pampered Chef has built a fantastic online community of users who love the product so much, and who have been given such great support themselves, peers will answer each other’s questions before The Pampered Chef has to respond.

#7: The Last Resort

If the offended party is unreceptive to your customer service attempts, blatantly hostile and only active in your community to start arguments, banning the individual is a last-resort option. And anyone leveling expletives or racial slurs against your staff or fans should be banned. Your staff and your fans don’t deserve to be subjected to the abuse, and in the end, they will respect you more because you took the initiative.

What’s been your experience? How has your business handled complaints from upset fans on your Facebook wall in the past? What has worked? What hasn’t?

~ socialmediaexaminer.com ~

Cleanup Begins

Irene cleanup begins as Vermont reels from ‘epic’ flooding

President Obama signed a declaration of emergency Monday for Vermont, hard hit during the night by severe and “epic” flooding caused by the last gasps of Tropical Storm Irene. Cleanup and damage assessment is underway up and down the East Coast with some estimates putting a $7-billion price tag on this storm.

The worst-case scenarios never came to pass as Hurricane Irene barrelled toward the U.S., making landfall in North Carolina and losing strength as it made its way up the East Coast. But that has been little solace to the Northeastern states. More than 22 deaths were attributed to the storm, a number that could rise as the soggy cleanup continues. Millions remain without power and stranded or displaced by floodwaters.

It will take days, perhaps more than a week to restore power to all customers.

Here’s a look at where the damage stands, but it will surely change as authorities begin assembling reports:

–Vermont, already experiencing an unusually wet year, suffered widespread flooding after Irene dumped six inches of rain on the area. The fear of falling trees and downed power lines remained a concern. One person was reported killed in the storm. Hundreds of roads are flooded and closed throughout the state. Many streams and river tributaries were flooding Monday morning. Even the state’s emergency management department offices were evacuated and the department’s email system is down.

The flooding was so bad that rescue teams were unable to reach stranded residents in towns along the Winooski River, including the capital, Montpelier. President Obama’s emergency declaration for the area will speed much-needed federal funds and other resources to aid cleanup.

–Millions, scattered fairly evenly along the storm’s path from North Carolina to Maine, still lacked power.

–Airports reopened but thousands of frustrated passengers were scrambling to rebook travel after an estimated 11,238 flights were canceled.

–The economic toll from Irene is expected to be hefty, with insured and uninsured damages totaling $5 billion to $7 billion, according to Jose Miranda of Eqecat Inc., a catastrophic risk management firm in Oakland. That number could also rise as a more detailed assessment begins.

And it’s not over yet.

“I’ve never seen flooding like this, especially this widespread,” said Capt. Ray Keefe of the Vermont State Police, who described the flooding as “epic.”

“We’ve lost a lot of homes; hundreds of roads, bridges have been washed away,” Keefe said. “This has been a real tough one.”

And late Sunday, it looked as if it might get tougher. Green Mountain Power warned it might have to release extra water from Marshfield Reservoir to save the dam, which would flood Montpelier again, the Associated Press reported.

In the Hudson River Valley in upstate New York, National Guard troops and rescue crews rushed to reach stranded citizens after floodwaters washed away bridges and made roads impassable, said Greene County Administrator Shaun Groden.

In Prattsville, a town of about 300 in the Catskill Mountains, floodwaters stranded scores of people, including about 20 marooned on the second floor of a motel. Troops used elevated Humvees to plow through the floodwaters while rescue crews used helicopters to reach the mountain communities, Groden said.

In New York, there were many signs that the relieved city was gaining back its step. Subways, which were closed over the weekend due to fears of flooding, reopened for the Monday morning commute and Wall Street was back in action. ~ latimes.com ~

Young women are ‘power users’ of social media sites

People keep on flocking to sites like Facebook and Twitter, and young women are leading the way.

The percentage of Internet users who are on social-networking sites continues to climb, according to a survey released Friday by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

In fact, it has doubled in the past three years, the report says, from about 29% in 2008 to 65% this year.

This year’s Pew report also marks the first time that more than 50% of adults surveyed (Web users and nonusers) use social networking.

In February 2005, 5% of adults told Pew they used social media.

The report calls young adult women the “power users” of social-media sites.

About 89% of online women from 18-29 years old are on the sites and 69% of them say they tend to log onto social media every day.

Overall, 69% of women on the Web said they use social networking, compared to 60% of all men.

Pew said women have been “significantly more likely” to be on social sites than men since 2009.

Only search engines and e-mail remained more popular than social media among Web users, according to the survey

In one question, Pew asked people who have used social-networking to give a one-word description of their experiences.

The responses were overwhelmingly positive, the report said, with one-in-five being negative.

Among positive responses, the top five were: good, fun, great, interesting and convenient.

The most popular negative responses were: boring, confusing, frustrating, time-consuming and overwhelming.

We’re particularly fond, however, of Pew’s list of words that were only mentioned once in a survey of well over 2,000 people.

Our favorites? Hogwash, glitches, omnipresent and nosey. ~ cnn.com ~

GenX, GenY…and now The Gadget Generation

College students own more technology and use more digital media than other consumers

Call them the gadget generation. College students own a wide range of digital devices compared with the overall adult population. According to Pew Internet & American Life Project, 96% of undergraduates owned a cell phone in 2010, vs. 82% of the adult population.

The vast majority of undergrads possessed a laptop and an iPod or MP3 player, too, at 88% and 84%, respectively. Only 52% of adults in general owned a laptop and even fewer—45%—had an iPod or MP3 player.

In a March 2011 survey done with Wakefield Research, textbook provider CourseSmart reached similar findings. Ninety-three percent of the respondents to that poll said they owned a laptop, while 47% admitted possession of a smartphone and 7%, an iPad.

When it comes to digital behavior, “today’s students are truly carrying a digital backpack,” noted CourseSmart in the survey. Over one-quarter of students listed their laptop as the most important item in their bag—almost three times the number of students who chose textbooks.

While iPad adoption may be low now, college kids polled by Harris Interactive on behalf of the Pearson Foundation see tablets as key to learning going forward. Indeed, 69% of respondents said tablets will transform the way college students learn in the future. Among student tablet owners, 86% believe tablets help them study more efficiently, and 76% said tablets help students perform better in class.

CourseSmart concluded from its study that “students are completely dependent on technologies.” One way that dependence is evident is that 38% of students surveyed said they could not go more than 10 minutes without checking their digital device—about the time it takes to walk to class. Marketers know that means there is a way to reach this audience online or via mobile anytime and anywhere—but also that these always-connected students can be sensitive to such communications. ~ emarketers.com ~

Could your shoes power your cellphone?

‘Reverse electrowetting’ could harvest enough energy from your walk to charge your phone or laptop.

Could an energy-harvesting device implanted into the sole of your shoe produce enough juice to power your cellphone, MP3 player or laptop? That’s the vision of researchers Tom Krupenkin and J. Ashley Taylor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who are developing a system that could do just that.

Their innovation hinges upon an idea called “electrowetting,” in which a droplet of a conductive liquid is placed on an electrode and is deformed by the application of electric charge. But Krupenkin took the concept in a different direction, what the researchers call “reverse electrowetting.” In this case, microscopic droplets are placed between multilayer thin films; as the droplets move — in this case, from the energy of a shoe landing on the ground — energy is produced. This energy can then be harvested to power just about anything.

Their paper, “Reverse electrowetting as a new approach to high-power energy harvesting,” was published on Aug. 23 in the journal Nature Communications.

The idea of capturing the energy you produce from walking is nothing new. For example, a device called the nPower PEG, introduced last year, can be stuck in a backpack or briefcase where it generates emergency power from the motion of the body.

Another system, first used in 2008, used the energy from dancers’ bodies to power the lights in a dance club’s floor.

But earlier systems are relatively inefficient, producing only a few milliwatts of electricity. Krupenkin and Taylor say their system could produce up to 10 or even 20 watts of energy, which is more than enough to power most small devices. Shoes could be built with USB ports, so any device could be plugged in and charged from the energy gathered while walking.

Not only that, it could be enough to store and operate a Wi-Fi hotspot right in your shoe, an innovation which they say would help make small devices more efficient and last longer between charges by operating as a kind of “middleman” between devices and networks.

The process would capture energy that would normally be lost as heat. “Humans, generally speaking, are very powerful energy-producing machines,” Krupenkin explained in a prepared release. “While sprinting, a person can produce as much as a kilowatt of power.”

The duo were inspired by the energy needs of people who would not have ready access to the electric grid, particularly soldiers in the field, who often carry as much as 20 pounds of batteries to power their communications equipment, laptops and night-vision goggles, according to the news release.

Krupenkin and Taylor have already formed a company, InStep NanoPower, LLC, to commercialize the technology.

So far, this is just a concept. The researchers have used 150 droplets to produce a few milliwatts of power. But they have extrapolated the data from those experiments and predict that 1,000 droplets — which would take up just 40 square centimeters — would produce 10 watts of electricity. ~ mnn.com ~

Social Media Keeps Patients Informed for Irene

With Hurricane Irene barreling towards the east coast, some evacuations are already under way and dialysis providers are urging patients to prepare ahead of time.

For example, DaVita is using its Facebook page (DaVita Kidney Care) to keep its patients up-to-date on what is going on with Hurricane Irene, as well as providing updates on clinic conditions and resources dialysis patients can use to prepare.

“In light of the CJASN research about dialysis patients’ lack of preparation for disasters, we think encouraging patients to prepare in advance is especially important,” DaVita spokewoman Ginger Pelz said in an email.

On its Facebook page, DaVita has issued a weather warning for Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. It’s a wide range of states, but right now Irene is keeping an unpredictable path. According to the National Weather Service, the category 3 Irene , whose winds are at 115 mph, is currently scraping across the Bahamas and is moving towards the northwest near 12 mph. In addition, a turn toward the north-northwest and then north are expected Thursday and Thursday night when the storm could reach category 4 status.

“As this matures, we’ll also be using [Facebook] for hyper-local information for our patients,” Pelz said. At the DaVita Facebook page, patients can expect to see information regarding the following questions:

* Has Hurricane Irene caused any damage to my clinic on Main Street?
* My street is under water because of a flood, so what should I do with my diet if I can’t get to a treatment?
* If I have to schedule a treatment at a different clinic because mine is closed due to a weather-related event, how should I go about doing so?

Social media is a great tool for patients and caregivers to use for disaster preparedness, especially as more and more people can access this information at all times with their smartphones and other mobile devices. If Irene does make landfall, hopefully efforts such as these around the kidney care community will keep patients safe. ~ Renal Business Today ~

More Americans Using Social Media and Technology in Emergencies

Americans are relying more and more on social media, mobile technology and online news outlets to learn about ongoing disasters, seek help and share information about their well-being after emergencies, according to two new surveys conducted by the American Red Cross.

The surveys, one by telephone of the general population and a second online survey, continue to show that the vast majority of Americans believe response organizations should be both monitoring social media during disasters and acting quickly to help.

“Social media is becoming an integral part of disaster response,” said Wendy Harman, director of social strategy for the American Red Cross. “During the record-breaking 2011 spring storm season, people across America alerted the Red Cross to their needs via Facebook. We also used Twitter to connect to thousands of people seeking comfort, and safety information to help get them through the darkest hours of storms.”

Key findings include:

* Followed by television and local radio, the internet is the third most popular way for people to gather emergency information with 18 percent of both the general and the online population specifically using Facebook for that purpose.
* Nearly a fourth (24 percent) of the general population and a third (31 percent) of the online population would use social media to let loved ones know they are safe;
* Four of five (80 percent) of the general and 69 percent of the online populations surveyed believe that national emergency response organizations should regularly monitor social media sites in order to respond promptly.
* For those who would post a request for help through social media, 39 percent of those polled online and 35 of those polled via telephone said they would expect help to arrive in less than one hour.

The surveys, which polled 1,011 telephone respondents and 1,046 online respondents, found that those from the online survey population use a variety of technologies to both learn more about disasters and share information about their well-being, including Facebook, Twitter, text alerts, online news sites and smart phone applications, suggesting that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to using these tools during disasters.

In contrast, people participating in the telephone survey tended to be more reliant on traditional media and non-social websites like those belonging to local news outlets, government agencies or utility companies. The Red Cross survey also found that women and households with children are more likely to use social media channels to inform others of their safety.

The survey findings show that the increasing use of social media and mobile technologies to get disaster information and to seek help should cause response agencies to adjust their procedures to use social media more to engage with people in times of disaster and to include information from social networks in their response efforts.

“Calling 9-1-1 is always the best first action to take when a person needs emergency assistance, but this survey shows there is an opportunity for emergency responders to meaningfully engage their communities on the social web,” said Trevor Riggen, senior director of disaster services for the American Red Cross. “Traditional media such as television and radio are still important ways to reach people with emergency information but the social web offers a chance for emergency responders to understand in real time what their communities care about and need – and to become part of the fabric of the community.”

On an average day, the Red Cross is mentioned 3,000 times in the social media space. During a disaster, those mentions grow exponentially and range from people asking for help to those looking for a way to help their neighbors to suggestions for monetary donations.

“As the numbers of people using these new technologies in disaster situations continue to increase, response agencies, including the Red Cross have a tremendous opportunity to engage the public where they are spending time,” said Harman. “Through social media, we can listen to, inform and empower people prior to emergencies, providing them with useful information about evacuation routes, shelters and safety tips before disasters strike.”

In August 2010, the Red Cross hosted an Emergency Social Data Summit at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. More than 150 people – leaders and experts in the government, social media, emergency response and the nonprofit sectors – attended the full-day summit to discuss how organizations might begin to listen to and potentially act on information that flows through the social web during disasters.

In the year since the Summit, the Red Cross has created a process to route life-threatening cries for help to local first responders. The organization has also increased its commitment to listen and engage social communities with a planned digital volunteer role, and continues to work with emergency response colleagues on processes and protocols for taking action on incoming information during disasters.

The Red Cross also offers two free mobile applications—one that provides shelter locations and the “American Red Cross SOS” app that teaches first aid and CPR. The shelter finder app can be accessed through the Apple app store and the SOS app can be accessed through the Android marketplace. The Red Cross has also integrated Facebook and Twitter into the Safe and Well site, so people can register that they are safe and update their social media status and let others know how they are doing.

This is the second year the Red Cross has studied the use of social media and other technologies in emergency situations. The Red Cross decided to broaden the survey audience and produce a more in-depth look at trends. This year’s study surveyed more than 1000 members of the general public and more than 1000 online users. The 2010 survey included only data from 1,058 online respondents. This year’s survey demonstrates an increasing reliance on online news and information in emergencies as well as increased participation in social networks. ~ prnewswire.com ~

East Coast Earthquake – A Social Media Masterpiece

#Twearthquake

From Atlanta to New York City, an earthquake was felt by millions of people, and lots of them took to their devices to broadcast their experience. I went from unaware to 100% knowledgeable in a matter of seconds. Yes, seconds. My Twitter feed exploded. Every single tweet for a good 2 minutes was about the earthquake that started in Virginia and had the Pentagon evacuating (the Washington Post later reported this wasn’t true.) My office didn’t feel it, but we didn’t have to. The amount of information pouring in through social networks was endless; we could almost experience it vicariously.

It started with regular people, friends, tweet mates, but then Reuters (which I hilariously pronounced “rooters”) and Associated Press tweeted the same story: that a 5.8 earthquake hit a huge part of the east coast. The sheer quantity of tweets and posts about the earthquake was mind blowing-ly enough to make you believe it was happening, even if you didn’t feel it for yourself. This was a brilliant display of social media networks and their users coming together to share crucial information with those who needed to know. Had the quake been more devastating, pictures, videos, and personal accounts of the incident would be immediately accessible, allowing for emergency responders to track, find, and rescue anyone or anything in danger.

My heart was racing, adrenaline pumping, preparing for our own building to rattle, but it did not happen. Someone said “earthquake” quietly and I immediately chimed in (blurted) that Twitter was going crazy, like a #twearthquake. I was so engulfed in the 5 minute adrenaline rush that a co-worked asked me to send her the links I was getting and all that came out was “check my feed.” I apologize to her if that came off as aggression; I was simply caught in the moment.

I am thrilled to have participated in and followed the epic social media outburst brought on by an event that none of us can control. An event curated by Mother Nature, someone we all have in common. Maybe that’s why social media works so well. People with common interests coming together to discuss them, and an earthquake that spans the east coast surely brings people together.

I see this as practice for future events. Some will be good, some will be scary, but we will be in the know with information flowing like a river – and that I am thankful for. ~ technorati.com ~

Web older than incoming college freshmen

Mention Amazon to the incoming class of college freshmen and they are more likely to think of shopping than the South American river. PC doesn’t stand for political correctness and breaking up is a lot easier thanks to Facebook and text messaging.

These are among the 75 references on this year’s Beloit College Mindset List, a compilation intended to remind teachers that college freshmen born mostly in 1993 see the world in a much different way: They fancied pogs and Tickle Me Elmo toys as children, watched televisions that never had dials and their lives have always been like a box of chocolates.

Once upon a time, relatives of the current generation swore never to trust anyone over the age of 30. This group could argue: Never trust anyone older than the Net.

The college’s compilation, released Tuesday, is assembled each year by two officials at the private school in southeastern Wisconsin. It also has evolved into a national phenomenon, a cultural touchstone that entertains even as it makes people wonder where the years have gone.

Remember when the initials LBJ referred to President Lyndon B. Johnson? Today, according to the list, they make teenagers think of NBA star LeBron James. And speaking of NBA legends, these kids didn’t want to be like Mike — they fawned over Shaq and Kobe.

In their lifetimes, Major League Baseball has always had three divisions plus wild-card playoff teams, and every state has always observed Martin Luther King Day. The “yadda, yadda, yadda” generation that’s been quoting Seinfeld since they were old enough to talk also has always seen women serve as U.S. Supreme Court justices and command U.S. Navy ships.

Then there’s OJ Simpson. These students were still in diapers when the former NFL star began searching for the killers of Nicole Simpson and Ronald Goldman.

“Hmm, I know there was some scandal about him,” said Alex Keesey, 18, an incoming freshman from Beloit. “I think it was robbery or murder, maybe both.”

Comments like that can be a little jarring to older folks who imagine that everyone knows about the Simpson murder trial and subsequent acquittal. But if the generation gap has you down, get used to it. The list’s authors note that technology has only accelerated the pace of change and further compressed the generational divide.

Older Americans who read previous Mindset Lists felt that life was moving too quickly, list author Ron Nief said, and now even younger people share that sentiment.

“I talk to people in their early 30s and they’re telling me they can’t keep up with all the advances,” Nief said.

Nief’s co-author, English professor Tom McBride, predicts the trend will only accelerate.

“If you look at the jump from email to texting, or from email to Facebook, it’s been faster than the jump from typing to computers,” McBride said. “These generational gaps are getting smaller.”

Still not feeling old? Consider this: Andre the Giant, River Phoenix and Frank Zappa all died before these students were born. They don’t know what a Commodore 64 was, and they don’t understand why Boston barflies would ever shout, “Norm!”

Oh, and Ferris Bueller could be their father.

But the list isn’t intended to serve as a cultural tombstone, its authors say, contending that the compilation also serves a practical purpose.

McBride and Nief say the main lesson professors should take from this year’s list is that their incoming students have never lived in a world without the Internet. From the moment these kids were able to reach a tabletop, their fingertips probably were brushing against computers plugged into the World Wide Web.

And while that was largely true for the last few classes as well, the authors say teachers need to be extra-vigilant about where this year’s students are going for information.

The Internet is great for finding facts, McBride says, but there’s a big difference between facts and the knowledge that comes from understanding context behind the facts. He advises professors to teach how to supplement Internet searches with library research in scholarly journals, and to remind freshmen to dig beyond the first page or two of Google search results.

Sara Ballesteros, an 18-year-old freshman from South Beloit, said she’s confident she knows how to do legitimate Internet research, by relying more on websites that end in “.edu” or “.gov” than in “.com” or “.org.”

She also opined that adults worry too much about kids’ Internet habits. She referred to item No. 7 on the Mindset List: “As they’ve grown up on websites and cellphones, adult experts have constantly fretted about their alleged deficits of empathy and concentration.”

“For older people who think we use the Internet way too much for bad things, it really depends on the person, on their beliefs and ideals,” she said. “Technology can be used in good ways. But adults don’t always understand that.” ~ yahoo.com ~

Gen Xers Are Online Media Kings

Demo uses more TV, online video and visits more ecommerce sites

Generation X—the first generation to grow up with PCs—are plugged in and media-savvy. For marketers, that means that while these 34- to 45-year-old consumers are heavy users of digital tools, they also watch more TV than any other age segment.

A new eMarketer report, “Gen X: Demographic Profile and Marketing Approaches” indicates that this group is as comfortable with digital as with traditional media. “To effectively engage with Gen X, brands need a strategy that incorporates multiple channels—including mobile, social and online video—with authentic, relevant messaging,” the report notes.

So, while no brand should leave TV out of the media mix when targeting these consumers, who are in the prime of their earning and spending potential, a brand would also be wise to include online video.

Gen X constitutes the largest online video audience. eMarketer forecasts that 74.2.% of Gen X internet users will watch online video at least monthly in 2011, and that percentage is expected to grow to 80% by 2015.

Most Gen Xers are online. eMarketer estimates that 88% of the segment are web users in 2011, and that number is expected to increase to 90.9% by 2015. They are slightly more likely than the general population to visit online retail sites and significantly more likely to visit mobile retail sites, according to comScore.

Top product categories purchased online by Gen Xers in fall 2010 included apparel, airline tickets, books and hotel reservations, concluded a survey by GfK MRI.

~ emarketer.com ~