Leading PR company (http://www.punchcomms.com/pr-company.html) Punch Communications has identified a vital trend in the utilisation of social networks for personal and professional use. From a brand perspective, social networks invest significant resource in differentiating their product offering from competitors in an increasingly crowded market; the net result being that people utilise certain social networks for business or professional use and others for mainly personal use.

Analysing the DNA of leading social networks Facebook and Twitter, online PR (http://www.punchcomms.com/Digital-Public-Relations.html) company Punch Communications identified a trend amongst its digitally savvy employees, where certain social networks remained largely a personal experience and others a largely professional experience.

With varying numbers of friends (Facebook) and followers (Twitter), there was clear evidence that Facebook was utilised for personal networking and Twitter for professional networking. Of the respondents, the percentage of professional ‘friends’ on Facebook ranged from 2.5% to no more than 9% with the individual number of friends per employee averaging a healthy 311.5.

However, when analysing the number of followers or those each Punch team member was following themselves on Twitter, the results show a distinctly different DNA to Facebook. With an average of 166 followers, the percentage that were professional ranged from 95% to 100%.

When analysing the friends and followers of Punch Communications Managing Director Pete Goold however, the results showed a far more even split, evidence of an increased investment in social networks as a professional marketing and new business tool.

Punch Communications Managing Director Pete Goold said: “Only a Luddite would dispute the importance of social networks for the marketing and pr sectors, not just now, but on an ever increasing basis. The figures from the Punch Communications internal poll demonstrate a continued commitment to see Facebook utilised as a personal social network and Twitter as a purely professional entity. However, as marketers increasingly recognise the potential of social networks to elongate brand conversations, expect the percentage gaps to narrow dramatically.”