Snapchat is Siphoning Away Younger Users from Facebook: Study

Facebook is losing its younger audience to other social media platforms like Snapchat at a higher rate than previously expected, reveals a study conducted by U.s.a.-based market research firm eMarketer. A written report based on the report reveals that even though Facebook was banking on Instagram to retain younger users within its ecosystem, a large bulk of them are migrating to rival app Snapchat.

The written report highlights that this year, for the first fourth dimension, less than half of U.s.a.-based internet users betwixt 12 and 17 years of historic period will use Facebook at least once per calendar month.

Even though the platform is still getting new users every day, a majority of the new user base is from a higher age group. The report predicts that the "number of total Facebook users in the US will reach 169.5 million this year, up nether just ane% from 2017. Meanwhile, Facebook's proportion of social network users accessing the platform will go on to decline over the forecast period."

It further reveals that the number of Facebook users, aged eleven and younger, will turn down by 9.3% and the number of users aged 12-17 and 18-24 volition decrease by 5.half-dozen% and 5.viii%, respectively. Overall, Facebook volition lose 2 million users aged 24 and younger this twelvemonth and eMarketer predicts that Facebook-owned Instagram volition gain 1.half-dozen million users in the same age group. However, Snapchat is expected to reach more success and volition add 1.nine million users in the same age group.

eMarketer principal annotator, Debra Aho Williamson, was quoted maxim:

"Snapchat could eventually experience more growth in older age groups, since it's redesigning its platform to be easier to utilize…The question volition be whether younger users will however find Snapchat cool if more than of their parents and grandparents are on it. That'southward the predicament Facebook is in."

Even though Snapchat is predicted to gain more than users, Instagram will still be bigger in the US. By the end of 2018, the report predicts that the number of Instagram users will attain 104.7 meg, up 13.1% twelvemonth-over-yr, while Snapchat will experience a 9.3% growth and reach 86.v one thousand thousand users in the same fourth dimension menses.