Are teens souring on Facebook?

It’s not the hip, new thing anymore. That much is clear as Facebook approaches a decade of existence, but the appeal of Facebook doesn’t seem to be slowing for anyone else other than teenagers. That’s the premise of the infographic below and it seems to have some legs.

Parents are getting on Facebook. This is a major downer for teens who once viewed Facebook as the online venue that they could “be themselves” without interactions or even knowledge from their parents and other adults. That isn’t the case anymore. As parents learn how to keep tabs on their kids online, kids are learning new ways to interact.

Then again, it could just be fatigue. Teens are notoriously ever-changing when it comes to fads. The rise of Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest – all could be having an effect on a migration away from Facebook. It could also be a false positive – teens may be as active as ever on Facebook, but are simply doing so privately to escape the visibility they get from authority. Regardless of whether or not it’s real, the perception is that Facebook is yesterday’s news, at least from a teen perspective.

It’s something that should be noted by businesses who are using Facebook for marketing. Today’s teens are tomorrow’s consumers and if they are truly souring on the platform, businesses must remain mobile in their own marketing efforts. What’s next? What’s replacing it? Is this a blip or a trend? These are all good questions. Unfortunately for businesses, there is no consolidated, accepted answer to any of these questions. That’s the way of the digital age. Just when you have it figured out, things change.

Here’s the infographic from Right Mix Marketing.

“Teenagers” image courtesy of Shutterstock.