Teens Don’t Use Twitter, What the Tweet?

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Twitter. A Trendy Social Media Site for Kids? No?

Most people I speak to think social network sites such as MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter are new, trendy and hip, but that does not mean it is popular among the youth.

In a study of 250,000 US internet users, Nielsen has released statistics showing that though 25% of internet users are under the age of 25, only 16% of twitter users in the same range.

Twitter Website Growth Age Demographic

Who is the cause of Growth on Twitter?

The 18-24 year old demographic who are normally the early adopters of social networks were the least likely to visit Twitter while the 45-54 year olds were the most likely, followed closely by the 25-34 year old age group.

Adults are twice as likely to try Twitter than Teenagers

Why aren’t teens using Twitter?

Some plausible possiblities.

  • More adults use twitter, so more adults are inclined to try it out as twitter is inherently a social network dependent on social relationships. Less teens on twitter means less spread.
  • Teens are already heavily dependent on texting as a quick form of communication.
  • But the biggest keypoint…

Twitter vs. Facebook – Two Completely Different Animals

Though social media sites seem very similar on the surface, they often serve very different purposes.

Twitter is inherently different from MySpace or Facebook. Twitter is not about connecting with friends, but a medium to connect with new contacts, whether that be those with similar interests, consumers, companies, celebrities or even corporations. It has also become the fastest medium to get up-to-date news. When news breaks out, it spreads throughout twitter like a storm. Connecting with thinkers, industry leaders, and others with similar interest is not something teenagers generally seek out. Twitter thus caters to an older demographic. It is all about the online discussions and conversations over topics and issues.

Facebook is about being in touch with friends and connecting with local groups. Teenagers (and adults alike) are more into connecting with friends, not about connecting with strangers or brands or keeping up with the news. So by default, there is more engagement among the youth with Facebook.

  • What are your thoughts and opinions?
  • Why do you think teen engagement on twitter is not as widespread?
  • What does this mean for twitter’s future, will teens eventually adopt it?
  • Do you use Twitter?

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2 Comments

  1. maybe teens don’t have anything good to tweet about. some random teenage girl started following me on twitter, and almost all her tweets were boring, like, “just woke up, watching tv, txt meeeeeeeee” “eating breakfast watching gossip girls txt meeeeeee” “bored txt meeeeeee.”

  2. I agree with the point that teens do not care about the news. As narcissistic as it sounds, most teenagers care very little about what goes on outside their sphere of influence.

    Twitter is also not as image reliant as Facebook. Today’s teen culture is all about visual images. Twitter just cannot keep a teenagers attention long enough.

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