E-Poll Market Research recently reported that despite record usage, the appeal of top social media sites is declining.
What started out as an enjoyable and innovative way for people to connect and interact with each other is turning into a time-consuming chore, according to a recent survey to determine consumer attitude toward social media.
The survey shows that while awareness and usage of social media sites is extremely high, the allure of using these sites is starting to wear thin with consumers. The survey also revealed consumers trust traditional media brands exponentially more than social media brands.
Top Social Media Sites are Declining
I also found this finding interesting…
Both Facebook and Twitter, two of the most recognizable and used social media platforms with approximately 140 million and 92 million monthly visitors, respectively, have surprisingly low appeal ratings — 50% and 18% respectively — suggesting that the sites are either habit-forming or viewed as a necessity, as opposed to a pastime.
I’m sure many would agree about the habit forming, addictive nature of social media. The constant feeling that you’re missing news and information from friends, colleagues or business associates.
How can I go for more than an hour without looking at Facebook? I have to know what everyone is doing!
And what if you’re a solopreneur or small business owner. How in the world are you supposed to keep up?
Perhaps someone just posted on Facebook that they are looking for a handyman or need a plumber. If you are one, you may be afraid of missing leads if you aren’t constantly trolling online.
Or what about following all those tweets? Without a solution like Tweet Deck, it’s nearly impossible!
I can certainly understand the low appeal findings as well. Often times it seems that checking Facebook for status updates or posting a photo, or tweeting out your latest news is more of a task that has to be done rather than something you look forward to.
And even though E-Poll only gave this one sentence in their release of this information, this finding does have huge implications for ad buyers and advertising sales people.
According to the research, “when asked to rate the trustworthiness of media brands, on average consumers found traditional media brands (broadcast, cable and print) more than twice as trustworthy as social media brands.”
Wow! A double whammy!
Not only is it now a chore to be on social media, but those that are don’t trust it as much as “real world” media.
What’s your take? Agree or disagree? And if you’re a business person, how do you juggle being in business, working on your business, and staying involved socially to benefit your business?
Leave a comment below. Thanks.
Related articles
