The Newsstand - February 2018

Facebook Declines in Popularity Among Teens

Social media networks have always been at war when it comes to being the youth’s favorite and for good a reason. Young people, especially teens (12-17), represent one of the most tech-savvy and receptive segments. They love to explore and interact with the latest platforms and features and are not yet as overwhelmed by all the social media ads out there.

Facebook has always prided itself on having a massive youth consumer base, but recently, the social media giant has started to face some serious image problems. Research shows that around 34% of teens (aged 12-17) feel that Facebook is a platform for “old people.”

Moreover, Facebook now faces some dangerous competition. According to Forrester Data’s insights, Facebook use among teens has failed to see any significant growth since 2017.

In fact, the platform has recently lost its place as the most popular social media platform among youth to YouTube, and now sits at second place closely followed (and threatened) by Instagram and Snapchat, both with a steady growth rate under their belt.

What does this mean?

This surprising trend reveals a lot more about teens than simply a change in behavior. Businesses today need to understand the unique way young people use and interact with social media.

To them, social networking is about very specific values, emotions, and benefits, instead of simply reach or breadth. This is one of the reasons youth have started drifting more towards specialized social media, like Instagram and Snapchat, targeting particular experiences like discovering brands, seeking entertainment, or participating in more intimate conversations.

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