If you’re looking to reach the younger demographics, you might want to skip the friend request and brush up on your camera skills: according to a Pew Research Center report (per Phys.org), teens are steering clear of Facebook in favor of YouTube and Instagram.
Further reading: The Dark Side of Influence
According to the survey, 51% of US teens ages 13 to 17 use Facebook, down from 71% in 2014-2015. Comparatively, 85% use YouTube, 72% Instagram and 69% Snapchat.
And the stereotypes of teens being glued to their phones is true: 95% said they used a smartphone, and 45% admitted to being online “almost constantly.”
Related: Why Amazon is the 2nd Most Popular App Among Teens and Millennials
But when it comes to the implications of social media, teens were more divided: 31% said it has had a mostly positive impact, 24% said mostly negative and 45% said neither. Positive attributes included the ability to stay connected and find people with similar interests; on the negative side, online bullying, the spread of false information and addiction.
“The social media environment among teens is quite different from what it was just three years ago," said Pew researcher Monica Anderson, the lead author of the report.
“Back then, teens' social media use mostly revolved around Facebook. Today, their habits revolve less around a single platform. At the same time we've seen this shift, teens are more digitally connected than ever.”
