In the past 18 months, the number of Canadians with a social media profile rose from 39 per cent to 56 per cent, a dramatic 17 per cent increase, says the Ipsos-Reid's Social Networking: 2009 study.

Seventy-five per cent of Canadians have Internet access at home, while 85 per cent have access from any location, such as home, work or a library.

Facebook is the clear leader in the social media space, with 85 per cent of online Canadians signed-up on the site. In comparison, only 1.45 per cent of online Canadians have a profile on Twitter.

Age and gender influence whether you are likely to have a social media profile, with women are slightly more likely than men to have a social media profile (59 per cent compared to 52 per cent).

Amongst Canadians who are aware of social media networks, youth is related to use:

• 86 per cent of 18-34 year olds have a social media profile
• 60 per cent of 35-54 year olds have a social media profile
• 44 per cent of those who are 55 or older have a social media profile.

"Clearly, the social networking phenomena is a big hit with the younger generation. What is surprising is the degree to which older members of the population are also exploring online social networks. From a marketing perspective, Facebook's back-end systems allow for the targeting of some very specific niche groups. In fact, Ipsos Reid has even used it for hard to fill quota groups for online surveys," says study author Mark Laver.

Canadians are not only signed-up on social network sites, they are active participants.

Thirty-two per cent of those who were aware of Facebook had visited the site within the past 48 hour, while 44 per cent had visited the site within the past week.

Overall, online Canadians spend more than a third of their time online interacting on social networks.

"Many companies employ a very simple media strategy, that is, follow the consumer," says Laver. "As the consumer continues to spend increasing amounts of time in the digital world businesses and marketers are paying increasing attention to the Internet. However, online social networks tend to be extremely personal and this thus creates a dilemma for marketers and businesses – how to communicate in a personalized setting without upsetting the target audience."

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