I have read several editorials and blog posts over the past several months involving Facebook. One of the presiding claims is that the social media world is due for another shakeup, and Facebook will be the empire that falls. But I don’t think that is true at all.
Why People Think Facebook Is Kaput
Seeing that Facebook is still the most popular and more influential social media platform on the web, those who haven’t come across this claim might be confused. Why would someone say that Facebook is going the way of Friendster, or MySpace?
It comes from both a better understanding of the world as it is now, and a lack of an understanding of the culture within it. There are an infinite number of social media apps, platforms and networks now. Young people, the most sought after demographic for all things new on the web, have split their loyalties into many different camps.
For example, while most teens have Facebook accounts, they tend to be more active on apps like Snapchat, or image sites like Instagram. As a teen I am related to told me recently, Facebook is where you go to talk to your grandmother. Snapchat is where you go to talk to your friends.
But the point is that they are still using Facebook. So are their parents, their friend’s parents, their professors, their grandparents, their neighbors, ect.
More importantly, corporations use Facebook. Sure, they also use Twitter (and to a lesser degree, other platforms). But Twitter is for brand monitoring, while Facebook is more inclined to direct, one on one engagement.
So yes, it is losing some of its fan base to other platforms. But ultimately it is still a powerhouse for consumer engagement, and a hub for families and older social media users. It isn’t going anywhere.
If anything, Facebook is set to rise. They are always introducing new ideas, such as the recent Marketplace and Gaming features. Bots are starting to launch, bringing AI to their customer service pages. And the profitability of selling freely mined user data isn’t going anywhere soon.
In short, Facebook isn’t going to be the next MySpace. Social media has take on a world of its own, and Zuckerberg remains on the throne.
