A SuperJob.ru survey showed that VKontakte is overtaking Odnoklassniki and becoming the most popular social network among Russian internet users. The article also explains who uses different social networks more often and why, why women are more active than men, and how networks help find old friends and classmates. It also notes that employers still rarely use social networks to search for and check candidates, and most HR specialists cannot assess this tool because access to sites is blocked.

A survey conducted by the Research Center of the portal SuperJob.ru showed that the social network “Odnoklassniki,” which was the most popular among Russian Internet users until quite recently, is losing its position — now Russians prefer to be on “V Kontakte.”
Today, 63% of survey participants visit “V Kontakte” (a year ago there were 48% of such respondents). Respondents consider it the most convenient and developed network, noting that “everything is neatly arranged and without excessive advertising.” The audience of “V Kontakte” mainly consists of young people under 20 (91%), and interest in it declines with age. “Odnoklassniki” hold second place among the most visited Russian social services (60% compared with 71% in 2008). The site’s main visitors are Russians aged 30-40 (68%). “It’s convenient for communicating with former colleagues and friends who have turned off ‘ICQ,’” respondents comment. “My World” (the mail.ru service) is used by 33% of our fellow citizens, with Russians aged 20-30 visiting it most often (35%). 10% of respondents noted the “My Circle” network (the yandex.ru service). It is used most intensively by respondents over 50 (20%). The least popular among our fellow citizens are the Facebook (4%) and Myspace (3%) networks; however, compared with the study conducted last year, their popularity among Russians has increased.
Women visit such sites noticeably more often than men. Men also make up a larger share of respondents who are not members of any network (20% versus 9% among women). Opponents of social networks are convinced that “they do not develop you and do not provide new interesting information,” “they break up families,” “the FSB arranged all this.”
In general, Russians use social networks as a means of communicating with people they already know (59%). Slightly less often — to restore lost connections (54%). Women pursue these goals more often than men, whereas men more often visit such sites in order to make new acquaintances (15% versus 11% among women) or business contacts (11% and 9%, respectively).
More than half of Russians meet in real life with people whose communication they maintain on networks. Some occasionally visit friends, while for others the network helped organize a reunion with classmates with whom contact had been lost for many years.
Searching for old friends, classmates, and colleagues is, without a doubt, an exciting activity. Perhaps social networks can become an effective tool for recruiting staff? However, as the survey by the Research Center of the portal SuperJob.ru showed, only 17% of Russian companies use social services to screen job applicants. Another 14% of employers use social networks to check candidates: “Very convenient to use at work. You learn a lot about a person”; “I check the candidate’s namesakes through the My.Mail network.”
Most Russian HR managers (69%), however, have no opportunity to assess in practice the effectiveness of finding employees through social networks: access to such sites is prohibited in their organizations.