In an online survey of over 9,000 consumers from nine countries, UK regulator Ofcom found that UK social media use among adults in the last 12 months has dropped 9%.
Among the nine countries – including – France, Germany, Italy, USA, Japan, Australia, Spain and China – the UK saw the biggest drop of social media usage among adults.
UK adults accessing social media at least once a week dropped from 65% in 2013 to 56% 2014.
Despite these drops, using social media sites like Facebook and Twitter remained the most popular internet activity, with 64% of respondents claiming it was their most frequent online activity, followed by 44 per cent who use it to read news.
The reason for the decline? It may be due the rise of other types of social media services which do not involve networks of connections, such as online video sites (e.g. YouTube) and instant messaging (e.g. WhatsApp).
Messaging apps have been the big growth and engagement success story of the digital space in recent years — underlined by Facebook’s $19 billion purchase of WhatsApp in 2014.
So there’s no need to panic. Social media isn’t going anywhere. Just look at these social media stats to see why.. Just look at these social media stats to see why.. Just look at these social media stats to see why.. Just look at these social media stats to see why.. However, it might mean that in 2015 you might need to look closer at your video marketing and messaging app strategies.
The full Ofcom International Communications Market Report 2014 can be found here.
Take a look at 2014’s social media stats here.
