The world has turned into a global village with the advent of the Internet. Different people prefer different types of content and hope to gain differently from online interactions. Social media users across generations prefer visual content such as images and videos. Visually-driven platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and Snapchat are popular among younger generations. On the other hand, Linkedin, Pinterest, and Reddit are also popular but not among every generation. Different generations use different social media, so a new trend is developed.
People should not think of social media in terms of Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram; its landscape is much more diverse. Social media refers to internet-based platforms and allows us to stay connected at all times. More than two-thirds of all internet users around the world use social media. Due to this social media platforms have been rising substantially in the past decade. Social media attracts not only the youth but also older generations. Motives of adopting and using social media differ for different generations. Some adopt it to share their opinion, and others simply wish to stay connected with their family and old friends.
Generations are classified into four categories- ‘ Z’ers (ages 13-17), millennials (ages 18-34), Generation’ X’ers (ages 35-54), and baby boomers (ages 55+). It is seen that younger generations use social media more frequently than baby boomers, and generation differences led to the growth of generation based social media.
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Social media use
The use of social media is certainly increasing. Social media affects everyone from businessmen, entrepreneurs, individuals, and celebrities to startups, big businesses, and small enterprises. A prime inclusion of social media is seen in the success story of any business. So some of the most critical use of social media is-
Communication
Various tools that are used for communication are well-known platforms of social media. Social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and many others are used to communicate between individuals, old friends, and family with the help of comments, images, videos, personal details, and a lot more.
Individuals can build strong relationships with each other with the help of these platforms. Communication made through social media brings productive results for the companies.
As a news source
Most of the users look online for the news of celebrities, weather, national news, sports news, and many others. People share news and articles on various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, Instagram, and others, and these platforms have made news a more participatory experience than before.
Social media is critical to keep in touch with our friends on a day-to-day basis. It’s a very important platform to have meaningful conversations with close friends. Some people also believe that lonely individuals are more likely to spend their time on social media for emotional support. So social media for generations also acts as a social tool.
As a self-presentational tool
People present themselves on social media platforms by uploading their videos and images. They customize personal profiles and are encouraged by likes and comments on their posts.
Brand monitoring
Brand monitoring is possible in this online world with the help of social media. The use of social media plays a crucial role in empowering businesses to know people’s comments about their brand, service, and products. It also empowers you to maintain the reputation of your brand and services on the web. Brand monitoring is used by the companies that deal with the public.
Entertainment
Online games, movies, television shows, and many others that entertain people are launched on social media platforms. Games like Mafia Wars, FarmVille, etc. are prime-time games that can be played only using social media sites.
The entertainment industry is completely dependent on social media platforms. Every generation, social media enhances interaction among the people and keeps them entertained.
Movies, episodes, television shows, etc., are promoted using different social media platforms.
Media sharing
Various social media platforms enable you to share videos and hymns online, such as YouTube, Spotify, Vimeo, and many others. On these platforms, people can create their channels to share videos and songs and interact with one another.
YouTube is a very well-known social media platform where many people share lots of videos and songs every day. Over 500 million people are its followers due to the fantastic things that it facilitates for its users.
Social media for generations: It is part of everyone’s life
Once social media was associated with younger generations only, but now all generations use social media as their daily routines.
Now social media is used at least once a day by more than 80% of every generation. The percentage of users on social media platforms is increasing continuously. Mobile devices and easy access to the Internet are some of the main reasons. Finding a sense of community, staying in touch with family and friends, promoting professional endeavors, gathering information about various facts, searching for solutions, expanding professional networks, looking for inspiration and ideas are crucial reasons for the increase in social media use.
Final verdict
So, generation differences become one of the reasons for different social media use. Different generations spend different amounts of time on different social media platforms. A report concluded that generation Zers (ages 13-17) use YouTube, Instagram, and Snapchat at least once a week. On the other hand, millennials use Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Reddit, Youtube, Instagram, and Snapchat at least once a week. Millennials focus on various platforms, while ‘Z’ers focus on fewer platforms. ‘Z’ers are more focused on mastering the ones, while millennials tend to use their time across multiple platforms.
Baby boomers spend more time on Facebook than ‘Z’ers and Millennials because they want to stay connected with their families and old friends. They spend less time on platforms such as Snapchat and Instagram. But younger generations are more interested in spending their time on Snapchat and Instagram because they can choose to see the good stuff and none of the junk.
Therefore, it is clear that different generations are interested in spending their time on various social media platforms. We can say that generation based social media is prevailing in our society.
Hey there! I’m Kuldeep Kumar, and tech is my jam. From the mind-blowing world of AI to the thrilling battlegrounds of cybersecurity, I love exploring every corner of this amazing world. Gadgets? I geek out over them. Hidden software tricks? Bring ’em on! I explain it all in clear, bite-sized chunks, laced with a touch of humor to keep things sparky. So, join me on this tech adventure, and let’s demystify the wonders of technology, one blog post at a time.