There’s been a lot of talk about the Clubhouse live audio chat app over the past few months.
The explosive growth of the invite-only, IOS-only app has certainly got the attention of those working in the audio world. Will the Clubhouse app kill podcasts? Is Clubhouse an update of live talk radio for the 2020s?
Social media competitors are also taking notice. Twitter has Twitter Spaces in beta mode. Meanwhile, Facebook is reported to be working on a live audio extension of Messenger Rooms.
Lots of talk, but not a lot of insights around what’s behind the buzz. Who’s talking about the Clubhouse app? Who’s using it? What are they saying about it?
We decided to dig in and find out more. We partnered with Digital Hug, who do social listening around the world for the film industry among others. Digital Hug did a global analysis of more than 1 million social media posts about Clubhouse from mid-February to mid-March. Meanwhile, at Signal Hill Insights, we did a couple of spot surveys among 3,000+ Canadians to get an idea who’s actually using Clubhouse and what they think about it. The full research report and survey details are below.
Here are some key findings from our research:
- It’s still early days. Even though the audio world feels like everyone’s on Clubhouse, it’s still far from reaching critical mass. Fewer than 20% of Canadian adults have even heard of it.
- Clubhouse is attracting a distinct early adopter profile. Males and social media users under the age of 35 are most likely to be talking about it—and are even more likely to have used the app.
- The chance to build community and professional connections is an early strength. Social media sentiment is largely positive, with participation over-indexing among those working in sales/ marketing and banking, and among entrepreneurs and executives.
- The jury is still out on Clubhouse’s long-term prospects. Skepticism around its value and utility is a barrier for many Canadians who heard of the app but haven’t used it. Even among those who have used the Clubhouse app, few are yet to be convinced “it’s going to be a big success.”
Click here to grab a copy of the report.
Interested in getting more information on our Clubhouse app study? Do you have your own thoughts and observations on Clubhouse? Drop me a line here or connect at signalhillinsights.com and we’ll continue the conversation.
Study Details:
The Signal Hill Insights Clubhouse surveys were conducted among a nationally representative sample of Canadian adults from the Maru Voice Canada online access panel. Total survey sample: 1,510 Canadians 18+ on March 9, 2021; 1,511 Canadians 18+ on March 17, 2021. The Digital Hug Clubhouse Exploration was in field Feb 14 – March 14, 2021: All regions; English language only. Primary keywords: Clubhouse, “club house”, @clubhouse, #clubhouse, #clubhouseinvite, #clubhouseinvitation.
