Save 50% on a 3-month Digiday+ membership. Ends Dec 5.
There’s a narrative that’s taken place that takes as accepted fact that Facebook’s once ironclad grip on the fickle teen market has slipped, as evidenced by the surge of other apps like Instagram and Whatsapp, which Facebook paid a combined $20 billion to acquire.
It’s undeniable Instagram and Whatsapp, among others like Snapchat, which Facebook also reportedly offered to buy, are surging. But it turns out Facebook’s core service is doing just fine with teens. New data from Forrester bears this out, showing that Facebook is still the default social network with teenagers.
The researcher found that three quarters of teens said they used Facebook monthly, over twice that of Pinterest, Tumblr and Snapchat. Facebook use is more than Instagram and Whatsapp combined, according to Forrester.
Forrester surveyed over 4,500 teens for the survey.
The data is a bit of an about face to the marketer view of Facebook. After all, it was only in October that Facebook CFO David Ebersman admitted teens were using the service less frequently.
“The bottom line: The sky is not falling,” Forrester analyst Nate Elliott, who has been critical of Facebook in the past, wrote in a blog post. “Facebook does not have a problem attracting or retaining teen users.”
Ad position: web_incontent_pos1
More in Marketing
Ulta, Best Buy and Adidas dominate AI holiday shopping mentions
The brands that are seeing the biggest boost from this shift in consumer behavior are some of the biggest retailers.
U.K. retailer Boots leads brand efforts to invest in ad creative’s data layer
For media dollars to make an impact, brands need ad creative that actually hits. More CMOs are investing in pre- and post-flight measurement.
‘AI is permeating everything we do’: How Guitar Center developed 2 AI tools this year
This summer, the company launched a chatbot called Rig Advisor to help customers find the right instruments and products.
Ad position: web_bfu