How many American adults are using social media platforms? And which ones are they using?
Hard on the heels of a February, 2014 report that 81% of American adults use the Internet, the Pew Research Center commissioned a survey to answer those burning questions about social media use.
The result of this latest effort is a quick look at social media platforms, including a snapshot of who’s using each of the five major channels — Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and LinkedIn — and how.
Despite all the gloom and doom predictions for Facebook in 2014, this report found that Facebook still reigns as the most popular social media. It continues to increase its level of user engagement. Its supporters continue to be very active.
The bad news for Facebook is that the number of new people signing up for it has waned. More and more — especially among the younger cohorts — those new to social media are heading for shiny new and niche social media platforms.
Facebook is skewing older, according to this report. For the first time ever, Pew concludes that more than half of Internet users 65 and older use Facebook.
While more people are branching out and using more than one social channel, Facebook remains the most popular. And, if only one site is used, it’s Facebook with 79% favoring it.
Facebook clearly is still a viable platform. But there’s a consensus building among thought leaders that migration to niche social media platforms is on the rise?
So we have to ask: What will that mean for Facebook in 2015?