YouGov research: 41% of UK online population becoming bored of social media
Some 41% of the UK online population claim to be getting bored of social media according to new research from YouGov.
But despite this almost two thirds (65%) have used Facebook within the last month and that figure rises to an almost ubiquitous 95% among 16-20 year olds.
YouTube is the closest social media site behind Facebook with half (50%) of all UK internet users using the site within the last month.
The other big hitters in terms of active users are Twitter (23%), Windows Live (14%), LinkedIn (13%), Google + (12%) and Spotify (10%).
Although Facebook's usage continues to remain well ahead of the population YouGov claims its figures might finally be starting to plateau.
Just under a quarter (23%) of the British online population who actively use Facebook state that they now use the networking site less compared with 12 months ago. Furthermore, 19% expect to use Facebook less in one year’s time.
As for what this means for marketers, just under half (44%) of the British online population would not be more positive about a product their friends have followed and/or liked and 43% are unlikely to talk about a brand on a social media site even if they heard something positive about it.
Some 47% of the 1275 respondents said they positively do mind seeing ads on social media services that are based on their profile activities.
Dan Brilot, media consulting director at YouGov, said: “It appears that whilst social media can be a key tool in the brand marketer’s armoury, in particular to maximise commitment amongst those already highly engaged with the brand, it has not quite reached the effectiveness necessary to be considered as a truly mass media marketing tool
“With the ability to share, tweet and interact on any kind of site, almost a given, social media services increasingly need to have an extra raison d’etre beyond merely being ‘social’ to make an impact in today’s crowded market.”