Facebook and Instagram have become symbols of
the social media era. They are popular all over the world: at the beginning of
2022, Facebook had about 2.9 billion active users, and Instagram had just over
one billion. However, popularity does not mean that these services suit
everyone now, and that in the future the number of people who want to use them
will continue to grow. In recent years, Facebook has experienced several
scandals related to the operation of feed algorithms, the use of participant
data and content moderation. As a result, more and more people are looking for
alternatives, preferring the quality of communication to the number of
publications and subscribers.
Why are Facebook and Instagram losing popularity?
Intriguingly, back in February 2022, Facebook detected
a decline in the number of users for the first time in its history. It occurs
mainly due to the fact that young people do not want to use this social
network, preferring other services such as TikTok. The novelties that Meta
promises to implement in the near future, such as the hyped œmetaverse, are
also unlikely can change the situation. How did it happen that an application
that was originally designed for students now does not appeal to them at all?
There are several reasons for this, and they concern not only Facebook, but
also Instagram, since both applications are owned by Meta, which determines the
strategy for their development.
Opaque algorithms. Users want to understand
why any given post appears in their feed. Many prefer chronological order, that
is, sorting posts by publication time, rather than by discussion activity,
popularity, topic, and other not always obvious characteristics. Facebook's
attempts to convince users that the main feed should not be a chronological
feed, but compiled by algorithms, repeatedly led to unpleasant incidents - as,
for example, in the case, when, due to Facebook algorithms, a user did not see
a message about the death of his friend.
Worldviews polarization. Facebook algorithms
often show people posts written by users with similar views, which, as a
result, receive only confirmation of their point of view, and not the opportunity
to broaden their horizons. At the same time, in open communities, discussions
often degenerate into meaningless disputes, the purpose of which is not the
search for truth, but self-affirmation.
Advertising content. For many companies,
especially small ones, Instagram and Facebook have become business tools, and
tо date they remain effective. However, users develop œad blindness, that is,
the habit of not noticing marketing posts in their feed. In addition, the very
fact that it is not always easy to distinguish a business account from a page
of a real person is annoying. How do you know if someone leaves you comments
because he likes your photo, or just so that you go to his page and, perhaps, start
to follow him? On the other hand, maybe this commentator is a bot in all?
Information noise. Over the years, the
principles of how social networks function have been well studied, and now we
have many guides about promotion methods. As a result, each user is bombarded
with a huge number of posts written not to share something really valuable and
interesting, but to attract attention. Clickbait headlines and images have also
become the rule rather than the exception. Users who do not want to succumb to
such manipulations find it difficult to get useful content, since for this they
are forced to browse and discard a lot of infoglut.
What is the alternative?
Thus, Facebook and Instagram are increasingly
losing the trust of ordinary users who want to find interesting acquaintances
and communicate, and not waste time separating the wheat from the chaff and
fighting algorithms. The alternative is relatively small communities, usually focused
on a hobby or goal. Yes, the total number of users in them is small, but each
of them is sure that they are corresponding with a real person, and not a bot,
and communication becomes much more meaningful.
One of such alternative directions is apps for
business networking. Finding new business contacts is the most important task
for anyone who wants to develop his business. Among those whom the user finds
through networking, there may be new clients, potential partners, or just
people with a fresh look, a conversation with which will give a creative idea.
Intriguingly, such applications are with
increasing frequency not limited to professional audiences and add features
that are interesting to private users as well. For example, using Meetup,
entrepreneurs can find those who work in the same field, or build a community
around their company, and for everyone else there are great opportunities to
meet by interests. PlaceTime has gone through a similar evolution, originally
launched as an app for entrepreneurs, but has recently added functionality that
appeals to a wider audience.
Networking apps can focus on only one aspect
of the network, such as organizing and attending events, or try to combine
different functions. Anyway, it's a great idea to install a couple of
networking applications now “ they will likely do you better than obsolete social
media.
