Mancs chatter about tech and ever-changing skyline survey reveals
A survey of the key talking points amongst Greater Manchester’s networks has revealed more chatter about talent, skills, and technology in the news and social media than the rest of the UK.
A new report “Greater Manchester and the Power of Networks” that measured online mentions across news, conversations, and social media, by communications specialist ING Media revealed digital conversations support its position as an investable city.
While Londoners sweat over dropping house prices, the future of Manchester’s property world and the built environment is also a crucial talking point for Mancunians, as the research reveals that almost one out of every five of the top conversations (19%) across Greater Manchester’s ten boroughs are about regeneration and urban renewal. This compares favourably against other top mentions, including local news (46%) and local politics (19%).
The region leads in discussing technology (15.7% of conversations from Greater Manchester compared to the national average of 13.1%) and talent (17.6% compared to 15.4% nationally) when comparing total share of all conversations across the UK.
However, it falls behind the rest of the national average in conversations about business and investment. Currently, only around a fifth (21.7%) of conversations in Greater Manchester are on this topic, while the national average stands at 26%.
Despite this, Greater Manchester has increased its conversations around business and investment by 3.2% over the past year.
ING Media studied all conversations and online mentions coming from Greater Manchester’s ten boroughs. Using a tested method of digital mentions, which originate from online news websites, social media sites such as ‘X’ (Twitter), online forums, blogs, Reddit, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Twitch, as well as comments and reviews. This analysis reveals the power of the region’s combined online presence, revealing how the ten boroughs of Greater Manchester contribute to increasing its digital visibility and inward investment prospects.
Damian Wild, Managing Director at ING Media, said: “Greater Manchester’s prominence in technology, talent, and culture is impressive, and there is untapped potential to better promote business and investment. Encouragingly our research indicates that discussions in this area have seen a 3.2% increase over the past year, signalling an opportunity for growth. Simultaneously, the passionate discourse on urban renewal and regeneration underscores the region’s commitment to creating an exceptional living and working environment, and a strong appeal to investors, aligning with the Greater Manchester Strategy.”
