Teens are now bunching their social network activity around four main social networks: Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook and have stopped using smaller ones such as Kik or Tumblr, according to new research.
The study, from investment bank PiperJaffray, quizzed teens on their social media use.
Snapchat, with 81% adoption, and Instagram, with 79%, are the leading platforms for teens between the age of 14 and 18. Facebook and Twitter are behind, with 51% and 56% respectively.
Samuel J. Kemp, analyst at PiperJaffray said in the report: “We believe this supports the notion that Snapchat and Instagram are continuing to be used differently by teens, who have carved out a separate use case for each.”
While the four leading platforms have been hovering around the same numbers for the past two years a bigger difference can be seen with more niche social networks like Kik or Tumblr.
Between Spring 2016 and Spring 2017, Kik saw a drop of 14% in usage down to 13% usage. Tumblr dropped to the same level.
The data from this survey contradicts the popular thought that Facebook and Twitter have been losing ground among teens in favour of Snapchat and Instagram. Instead teens are focusing on the four main social networks, but have a different use case for each.