Last month we included a survey in our newsletter asking about social media (blogs, LinkedIn, Twitter). The results of this survey were very clear. No one really uses, or even wants to use, social media.
We had 43 people respond to the survey. Here are their responses to the questions we asked.
Do you read any blogs related to engineering or AutoCAD?
Nine people read blogs. In the comments, we asked what blogs people read. Of the nine people, there was no overlap in the blogs they read. All nine had a completely different list of blogs they read.
Do you or your company have a blog related to engineering or AutoCAD?
Four people have blogs. In the comments, we asked for a link to the blog. Only one person listed a blog: our own VP, Mark Robison (he is more involved in running his engineering firm than with Design Master, so we let him respond to these surveys). You can read his blog at markrobisonpe.com. One commenter stated they have a private blog and another stated they have a quarterly newsletter. The other person who said they have a blog did not leave a comment.
Do you have a twitter account that you use for professional purposes?
One person said yes to this question, but failed to list their twitter account. There was one comment to this question: “Please spare us.”
Do you have a LinkedIn account?
Eighteen people use LinkedIn, making it by far the most popular form of social media we asked about. Based upon the comments, however, not many people who have a LinkedIn account actively use it.
If you do have one, you can link to David or join the Design Master group.
What magazines related to engineering or AutoCAD do you read?
This question was about traditional media. We eliminated all our magazine ads this year because they were fairly expensive and not generating many leads for us. However, we wanted to know which magazines our users do read, in case we ever decide to place ads again. The most commonly read magazine, EC&M, was read by 43% of respondents.
We did not ask how many engineers read magazines related to engineering or AutoCAD directly, but we know that 34 people selected at least one magazine that they read. That means that at least 79% of respondents read magazines.
Comparing the number of respondents who read magazines versus the number who read blogs, use Twitter, and use LinkedIn, it is clear that engineers strongly prefer to use traditional media rather than social media to learn about their profession.