Facebook has dominated social media for years. People of all ages use Facebook regardless of how tech savvy they are. When people think about social media, the first thought that comes to mind is likely Facebook. With that said, Frank N. Magid Associates found through a recent survey that the percentages of teens between the ages of 13 to 17 do not use Facebook as much as they once did.
The survey showed that in the United States Facebook is only used by about 88% of teens. That is a 6% drop since 2013 and a 7% drop since 2012. On top of the drop of teen use, Facebook also saw a drop in overall users. In 2014 Facebook dropped to 90% from 93% in the last two years.
Over the last few years there have been a number of new social media apps that have become more popular amongst teens. Some of these apps include Snapchat, Twitter, Pinterest, Vine, and Instagram (which is now owned by Facebook). Although Facebook owns the lion’s share of social media, these other parties are slowly gaining more and more followers.
Facebook has also been receiving negative press due to them constantly changing their privacy policies. These constant changes at times have left the impression that Facebook is not as concerned about its users privacy as they should be. This concern was addressed during Mark Zuckerberg live Q&A session.
I have actually heard a number of people calling Facebook, Mombook; because it is becoming the social media for adults. Facebook has evolved from being a place where people communicate and socialize to simply a way to let the world know what your eating/doing/smelling/thinking/twerking…. People then sit and determine their self-value by the number of “likes” that their posts receive. Likes have become the lazy way to stay friends. Additionally, Instagram and Pinterest are picking up steam because they are a better medium for sharing pictures and life events. Have you ever posted a picture of bacon for no reason? I have, and it’s likely the reason that Facebook is dying.
There could be many reasons why Facebook’s teenage following could be declining. However, Facebook still dominates social media and I do not foresee that changing anytime soon. Do you feel the same? Why do you think Facebook’s following has dropped in the last few years? Let us know in the comment section below.