Based on research carried out by Gartner, it has been determined that a whopping 20% of social media users are 'influencers.' Considering the increasing importance of such media in news dissemination and increasing website traffic, how can this information be exploited?

Grouped into 'Salesmen,' 'Connectors' and 'Mavens,' this 20% is able to influence over 70% of other users' activity. According to Nick Ingelbrecht, research director at Gartner, "Salesmen and Connectors are the most effective social network influencers and the most important groups."

The report explains the Connectors as performing a bridging function. They can be heavy connectors, "who have varied but tight circles of friends and family with whom they maintain very regular contact," or light connectors "who span a much wider range of different groups, but inevitably with ties that are much weaker and less frequent."

The Salesmen "have extensive social connections, but their defining characteristic is their propensity to persuade people to do things," and the Mavens "are knowledge exchangers or information brokers...experts in particular areas...other people go to Mavens for advice." Unlike the salesmen, the mavens are altruistic in intent.

Other groups are the Seekers (who "connect with other people in order to find out the information"), the Self-Sufficient (who "prefer to find out for themselves what they need to know in order to satisfy their needs"), and the unclassified, who make up two-thirds of the entire population.

Ingelbrecht advises that: "Companies attempting to use social networks should develop relationships with key customers over a period of time and progressively refine the social network profiles of those individuals. In this way, the most suitable individuals can be targeted with the right information."

So when it comes to getting clicks to your news website, your best bet would be to first of all identify the obvious salesmen, connectors and mavens in your network, and target them with links and information. There's a 70% chance that others might follow their lead!

Source: warc.com, Gartner Press Release