Do social media buttons work better "within" a website or "outside" of a website?

[aschroet]

Websites like techcrunch.com include the social media buttons (+1, FB like, linkedin etc.) to the left of their articles so they seem to float outside of the content. Some even let the social media buttons wander while scrolling, so that they are always visible (e.g. here: http://www.kirstenwinkler.com/news-from-palabea-and-how-to-prepare-kids-for-tomorrow/).  The "traditional" way has been to include the buttons within the content, e.g. on top of the article or on the right hand side.

I was wondering which alternative has the largest impact. Intuitively "outside" of the content should be more visible as it "breaks" with the website design. Has anyone done an empirical test which version gets more clicks?

[aschroet]

I thought I add a few discussions that I have come across in my research:

Some stats and opinions on sharing buttons:
http://ux.stackexchange.com/questions/4727/are-share-this-buttons-really-effective

Suggestions where to put the button depending on the content of your website:
http://ux.stackexchange.com/questions/18047/share-buttons-on-landing-page-where-to-place-them

Understanding the difference between social buttons:
http://www.streetarticles.com/social-media/where-should-you-position-social-media-buttons

Discussion on the most effective location of social buttons:
http://www.ixda.org/node/29819
http://ux.stackexchange.com/questions/3462/social-share-buttons-best-position

[aschroet]

Thanks Edward!

I agree with you that many people don't use them (apparently the 99/1 rule works here as well: 99% don't, 1% do share). However, catching the attention of the people who are likely to share is the first step. So you need to make it as easy and appealing to them as possible. So my approach would be to design the website based on (i) visibility and (ii) ease of use for the social buttons (not the other way around).

I quite like you little gif, looks really nice!

[edwardlewis]

I've got a range of sites that have them either in the content or outside, say fixed position so that they are always visible.

I havent noticed a big difference between the two, but I would say that I am often quite suprised by how few people actually use them. Most SEO you speak to will emphasise how important they are, but if you ask an average user, eg my Mum, she wouldn't know what half of them are or how to use them.

Much of the decision about where they should go will often be led be the design. Thats generally my approach, if they fit in and look visible then they go in the content, but if not they end up on the side. I do quite like the sideways approach as they are very clear, you can use other things to make them more visible, on a recent site I used a small gif to draw attention: http://thedoubleglazingfund.co.uk/