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Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

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Re: Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

#41

Post by mladenkovacevic »

k-mcgrady wrote: post #33
harryf wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's that saying? "It's not you that owns your possessions, it's your possessions that owns you" s/possessions/data/

Photos have too much sentimental value attached to them to think of them as just another 'possession'. They will provide value to you in 10 years, 25 years, and 50 years and can't be easily replaced.

I don't want to stereotype teens since I'm sure there are a lot of mature, insightful teenagers, but do you think most teens place a lot of importance on their data? Do they want to keep and treasure all their selfies and random party pics well into their college years?

16-21 is like a personality black hole for most people. It's a time when you're super self-absorbed and you're living from moment to moment, literally changing every day. If I'm totally alone here then please ignore me, but once in a while I will run into a random picture of me when I was 17 or something and I can't help but think "who the fuck is this person".. and immediately want to bury that particular picture. Pictures with family are a different story, those I treasure immensely. But they are so few and far between, and certainly would not have been considered Facebook-worthy in my teens.

Re: Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

#42

Post by silvestrov »

onlyup wrote: post #14
mosqutip wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's probably more along the lines of "I hate that I have to use Facebook, because that's the cool thing to do, but everyone else uses it, so I'd be even more uncool if I didn't use it."

No more like: If I didn't use Facebook I wouldn't know what everyone is talking about. See also: reality TV.

It's high school, it's so easy to become ostracized if you don't do the same as all the other kids in class.

Re: Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

#43

Post by alsocasey »

mosqutip wrote: post #2

Facebook has no real incentive to reach out to this age group. They won't earn much profit off of teens, and teens are younger than their original demographic (college-aged students). Also, I thought the line about "everyone says Facebook is dying" was quite telling. The stats say otherwise, but people will believe what they want (or what the media tells them).

The incentive is advertising revenue - teens are a very attractive ad market.

Re: Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

#44

Post by hkolek »

Chronic24 wrote: post #23
mk1x wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exactly, of course you should focus on your most profitable demographic when launching a new product. But once you have a sustainable business it's important to think about where your money will be coming from in the future. I doubt anyone will say that tobacco companies marketing to teenagers is a bad idea because they can't even buy the product yet. It ensures the long term profitability of the company.

If it is not a bad idea, then why don't I see them marketing cigarettes to teens and/or lobbing congress (to get X law passed).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tobacco_advertising#Targeting_y...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tobacco_advertising#Advertiseme...

Re: Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

#45

Post by odie88 »

mosqutip wrote: post #13
pdenya wrote: post #11

> “Honestly,” one 15-year-old girl told Pew, “I'm on it constantly but I hate it so much.” Maybe I'm too far from high school but I can't picture a situation where you would have to use FB "constantly" even though you "hate it". It's not really explained in the article either, there's just some superficial quotes about "Drama" and "Adult presence". I know adult's who say they hate facebook but maintain accounts but t…

It's probably more along the lines of "I hate that I have to use Facebook, because that's the cool thing to do, but everyone else uses it, so I'd be even more uncool if I didn't use it."

My buddy had a status update today that I think sums up the feeling: "Going to Facebook has become the equivalent of opening the fridge & staring inside, even though you're not hungry."

Re: Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

#46

Post by prezjordan »

dkulchenko wrote: post #28

Teen here. I'm firmly in the "hate it but can't stop using it" camp. I've tried G+, and for a brief period a few of my friends tried it as well, but we switched back when it failed to reach critical mass. That's all Facebook has going for it, really, is the people using it; I'm sure most of us would switch to a better network if given the chance, but we won't do it unless a significant majority of our friends come al…

I left, then got an internship in the valley and needed a way to interact with my fellow interns before flying out. So I came crawling back. Everything you've said resonates with me - "not particularly close to" is also a HUGE chunk of my social circle. Makes you think, though, do I really need to keep in touch with these people? If I really needed to, I could find a way (call, SMS, email, etc).

Re: Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

#47

Post by marssaxman »

mosqutip wrote: post #30
dkulchenko wrote: post #28

Teen here. I'm firmly in the "hate it but can't stop using it" camp. I've tried G+, and for a brief period a few of my friends tried it as well, but we switched back when it failed to reach critical mass. That's all Facebook has going for it, really, is the people using it; I'm sure most of us would switch to a better network if given the chance, but we won't do it unless a significant majority of our friends come al…

I think pretty much everyone who uses Facebook is, at least partially, in this mindset. The network is so large that people feel as though they're missing out if they leave (whether or not that is actually true).

I signed up again, after a 2+ year absence, because I discovered solid proof that I was missing out. People would be surprised not to see me at some event or other, and I would comment that I hadn't been invited, and this would create confusion - "well, let me check facebook, I'm sure I invited you" - "I'm not on Facebook" - "Ohh....."

One of my friends had a special list of half a dozen people he still sent emailed event invitations to. It's extra work, though, and most people stopped bothering. I decided that my hate for Facebook inc. was not strong enough to make me willing to inconvenience my friends, so I signed back up.

Re: Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

#48

Post by neilk »

In 2007, danah boyd posited that teens don't get stuck to social networks. The theory was that they didn't need to maintain a giant extended network, because they saw their friends every day anyway. Besides they are shifting friend groups constantly, so rebuilding a profile is like spring cleaning.

http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2007/01/01/ephemer...

She later argues that Facebook became the network of choice among college-bound kids. Maybe that sort of person does want to maintain an extended network (dkulchenko's example is about internships, for instance).

So was is it true that teens are more able to switch, or not? Was it always wrong? Has it changed as Facebook ate the entire social networking universe? I would appreciate it if younger HN'ers weighed in.

Re: Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

#49

Post by iso8859-1 »

Jackim wrote: post #26
mladenkovacevic wrote: post #9

If anyone can leave Facebook it's teens. Their social networks aren't developed/mature enough where they have to depend on other people's social network preferences. Most teens could literally leave on a whim and bring most of their friend with them. I still remember how quick the exodus from ICQ to MSN was (and nobody hated ICQ.. it just kinda happened). Also when a teen tells you that they hate something because th…

I disagree that it's easy to leave like that. I have the email/phone number of maybe 5% of my Facebook friends. If I need to contact any of them, the quickest way is Facebook.

So get the numbers, then leave. Get their address too. Snail mail will soon be hip again.

Re: Teenagers Hate Facebook, but They're Not Logging Off

#50

Post by redidas »

I wonder if there's a market for several smaller "social" networks centered around a single focus?

I was in college when facebook was expanding through universities. It was great, and the experience and content on facebook mirrored college life.

When it expanded beyond college and added the news feed, I found myself using it less. College-me was not the person I was for my grandma. I didn't care about the political views of my parents' friend who I hadn't seen in 10 years.

And it wasn't just me - Every now and then I log in to facebook to see what old classmates have been up to, and a lot of them have become inactive like myself.

The article mentions teens liking instagram more - its has a purpose centered around photos, and that it.

Writing this, I kind of miss old facebook and its limited uses.

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