Online identity is such a big deal that I prefer to lampoon the whole concept. I use the most ridiculous screen names possible (although when I tried to register as GrannyPanties a few weeks ago a fellow jester had taken it). Identity isn’t just linked to the names we choose, it’s also tied to the provider we use. The Oatmeal has a great infographic on this, but now there’s an algorithm to make blatant assumptions more precisely. See if you match up to the stereotypes. Check out the data provided by HunchBlog.com on email domain use. Or click over to their interactive version. Only half the stereotypes apply to this gmail-using farm girl. Below is Hunch Blog’s “Snapshot of Findings:”
- AOL users are most likely to be overweight women ages 35-64 who have a high school diploma and are spiritual but not religious. They tend to be politically middle of the road, in a relationship of 10+ years, and have children. AOL users live in the suburbs and haven’t traveled outside their own country. Family is their first priority. AOL users mostly read magazines, have a desktop computer, listen to the radio, and watch TV on 1-3 DVRs in their home. At home, they lounge around in sweats. AOL users are optimistic extroverts who prefer sweet snacks and like working on a team.
- Gmail users are most likely to be thin young men ages 18-34 who are college-educated and not religious. Like other young Hunch users, they tend to be politically liberal, single (and ready to mingle), and childless. Gmail users live in cities and have traveled to five or more countries. They’re career-focused and plugged in — they mostly read blogs, have an iPhone and laptop, and listen to music via MP3s and computers (but they don’t have a DVR). At home, they lounge around in a t-shirt and jeans. Gmail users prefer salty snacks and are introverted and entrepreneurial. They are optimistic or pessimistic, depending on the situation.
- Hotmail users are most likely to be young women of average build ages 18-34 (and younger) who have a high school diploma and are not religious. They tend to be politically middle of the road, single, and childless. Hotmail users live in the suburbs, perhaps still with their parents, and have traveled to up to five countries.They mostly read magazines and contemporary fiction, have a laptop, and listen to music via MP3s and computers (but they don’t have a DVR). At home, Hotmail users lounge around in a t-shirt and jeans. They’re introverts who prefer sweet snacks and like working on a team. They consider themselves more pessimistic but sometimes it depends on the situation.
- Yahoo! users are most likely to be overweight women ages 18-49 who have a high school diploma and are spiritual, but not religious. They tend to be politically middle of the road, in a relationship of 1-5 years, and have children. Yahoo! users live in the suburbs or in rural areas and haven’t traveled outside their own country. Family is their first priority. They mostly read magazines, are almost equally likely to have a laptop or desktop computer, listen to the radio and cds, and watch TV on 1-2 DVRs in their home. At home, Yahoo! users lounge around in pajamas. They’re extroverts who prefer sweet snacks and like working on a team. Yahoo! users are optimistic or pessimistic, depending on the situation.
Um….what happened to educated women? Or overweight men? I wanted this to be funny, but it isn’t really. Darn.
It’s amazing the assumptions that people will make. According to the Snapshot, I’m a GMail user.
30 year old man
College educated
Non-religious
Politically liberal
Plugged in
T-shirt and jeans (even at work when I can get away with it)
Optimistic/Pessimistic
But that’s where the similarities end. Married, with a kid, only been to one other country, not really career-oriented (the job is so I can support my family and lifestyle, it doesn’t define me), and, oh that’s right, I have not one but two Hotmail accounts, one on Yahoo, and nothing on Gmail.
And also, apparently any man older than 34 just doesn’t use e-mail, or uses whatever was supplied by his service provider (other than AOL).
I guess this is another case where someone has used an assumption, and comes out looking like an ass.
The stats probably say a lot more about HunchBlog users than anything else. I’d like to think we’re emerging into a post-stereotype world, where assumptions like these prove the petty ridiculousness of prejudgment.
You have it all wrong. AOL are ALL OVER 60. ARE RELIGIOUS and may or may not be overweight. 🙂 They are AARP members however. No one 35 uses AOL. They have never heard of it, it was before their time!!
“Hotmail users are most likely to be young women of average build ages 18-34 (and younger) who have a high school diploma and are not religious.”
Again, my take this is the PT CRUISER crowd, mid 60’s women, cropped hair. etc.
No one aged 18-34 would ever use hotmail.
I wont dispute the rest as I can stereotype them much more accurately from my business here and the emails guests give us!
i don’t fit the stereotype either. i’m a 34 year old married female, mother of one, of average build, and i use gmail. i will say i do roll my eyes at yahoo, hotmail or aol email addresses… i try not to but i my old hotmail account (back in the 90s) used to drive me nuts, as did my old yahoo account. my lack of computer skills drove me to gmail instead of keeping me tethered to hotmail or yahoo.
While Yahoo describes me pretty well (and I hold a yahoo account), Gmail fails epically, (and I hold a gmail account) I use both equally for different reasons. This strikes me much the same way as horoscopes wherein they are vague enough to be applicable to many people. I’m a Libra but any given day I can make Scorpio fit too. Amusing but I fear all too many people take this and others like it entirely too seriously.
So…what’s their sample size? How did they accumulate their data? Is their sample truly representative of all gmail, hotmail, yahoo, and aol email account holders? How did they account for those with more than one email account with more than one provider? Do they make a difference between account holder and account user (I have an account I use to register on some sites, another for business, another for personal use)? What about a thin, single, career-focused woman who reads news and magazines using an electronic device – what email provider does she likely use for her personal email?
Exactly Zoey. This is a snapshot of HunchBlog users, not representative of anything except blatant assumptions.
I have Yahoo! and Gmail accounts, as well as my work email. I have had the Yahoo! account for the past 11 years and will hold onto it as long as I can, because it’s not embarrassing and it’s one that my friends and family know.
Yeah, this ignors the fact that a lot of people have accounts for different things. I have a gmail (personal), yahoo (business…yeah…I picked that one wrong…but it’s easy to sort things on it, so that’s why), and hotmail (junkmail).