Why Many Teens Are Moving on from Facebook and What they are saying about mobile phones and texting

JULY 12, 2010

The main reason? They just lost interest

There’s no question of Facebook’s position at the top of the social networking space, and one thing that makes the site so powerful is that when it comes to social networking, a user’s friends must be users too. But among some teens, Facebook may be losing its stickiness.

According to a study from OTX and virtual fashion site Roiworld, nearly one in five teens with a Facebook profile had decreased or discontinued their use of the site as of April 2010.

What’s more, the decreases seemed to speed up in recent months, with two-thirds of the lapsed users having turned away from the site in the past six months.

In addition, 9% of teen internet users said they had a Facebook profile but had completely abandoned it.

This turnover does not approach the level of MySpace, where 22% of teens had completely stopped using a profile. YouTube and Twitter both sported relatively high 15% abandonment rates.

In Facebook’s case, decreased usage does not appear to be related to the privacy issues raised in spring 2010, or even to the influx of older users on the site. Instead, the plurality of lapsed users simply find the site boring.

Reasons for using Facebook less, Apr 2010 (% of US teen lapese Facebook users)

• Lose interest/it's boring 45%
• More interested in visiting other websites instead 28%
• Too many notifications 27%
• Most/all of my friends do not use Facebook 21%
  
• Got tired of typing to keep up with all the activities 21%
  
• Too many ads 20%
  
• Had trouble finding people I know 18%
• Most of my friends are using other social networking sites 16%
• Other social network sites are better now 16%
• Facebook does not offer the features I want 16%
• Because my parents joined 16%
• Facebook has lost its novelty 14%
• Too many adults/older people 14%
• Uncomfortable people seeing my personal stuff 13%
• Do not like the change Facebook has implemented 12%
• Did not like the people I met on Facebook 11%
• Other 5%

Source Roiworld and OTX "Teens & social networks study" June 30, 2010

Keeping fickle teens’ interest will be important both for Facebook and the marketers who want to connect with them where they are - their mobile phones.

Nearly half (47%) of US teens say their social life would end or be worsened without their cell phone, and nearly six in 10 (57%) credit their mobile device with improving their life, according to a national survey from CTIA and Harris Interactive.

Four out of five teens (17 million) carry a wireless device (a 40% increase since 2004), finds the study titled “Teenagers: A Generation Unplugged,” which probes how the growing teen wireless segment is using wireless products and how they want to use them in the future.

Impact on Teen Life

• A majority (57%) of teens view their cell phone as the key to their social life.
• Second only to clothing, teens say, a person’s cell phone tells the most about their social status or popularity, outranking jewelry, watches and shoes.

Providing Entertainment and Security

• More than half of the respondents (52%) agree that the cell phone has become a new form of entertainment.
• One-third of teens play games on their phone.
• 80% say their cell phone provides a sense of security while on the go, confirming that the cell phone has become their mobile safety net when needing a ride (79%), getting important information (51%), or just helping out someone in trouble (35%).
• Teens carry cell phones to have access to friends, family and current events.
• Though only one in five (18%) teens care to pinpoint the location of their family and friends via their cell phone, 36% hate the idea of a cell phone feature that allows others to know their exact location.

Texting Replacing Talking

The study also confirmed that texting is replacing talking among teens. Teens admitted spending nearly an equal amount of time talking as they do texting each month. The feature is so important to them that if texting were no longer an option 47% of teens say their social life would end or be worsened - that’s especially so among females (54% vs. 40%).

Teens say texting has advantages over talking because it offers more options, including multitasking, speed, the option to avoid verbal communication, and because it is fun - in that order, according to the study.

With more than 1 billion text messages sent each day, it is no surprise that 42% of teens say they can text blindfolded, the study found.

“Teens have created a new form of communication. We call it texting, but in essence it is a reflection of how teens want to communicate to match their lifestyles. It is all about multitasking, speed, privacy and control,” said Joseph Porus, VP & chief architect, Technology Group, Harris Interactive. “Teens in this study are crying for personalization and control of exactly what a wireless device or plan can do for them.”

Devices of the Future

The survey asked teens what future changes they’d like to see in wireless services and devices and found that respondents want cell phones that break boundaries and are personalized to fit their lifestyles.

Teens remain excited and open minded about the wireless possibilities and their ideal future mobile devices would feature five applications - phone, MP3 player, GPS, laptop computer and video player, according to Harris.