There is no question that social media has become a big part of people’s lives and has impacted the meaning of communication, whether it be between businesses or people in general. Ever since the introduction of social media and the massive growth it has had, new social media platforms have emerged. These applications all aim to serve different needs and purposes, an example being how a platform used to promote a business may not be the same as a platform used to communicate with friends. Some of these platforms are in fact very similar and serve similar purposes, while others could not be more different. Everyone has their own preference of which social media platform they think is best. Whichever it may be, it is important that it is the most effective one for the purpose one has. So, what necessarily makes one social media platform better or worse than another?

Facebook

Facebook has become one of the most visited social media platforms ever since its release in 2004, and is continuing to thrive globally. Statistically, they have had over 2.8 billion active users monthly, and 1.84 billion active users daily (market.us). Some may be surprised when hearing these numbers, since Facebook has been regarded as a platform for older people by younger generations. Despite this, Facebook has many advantages and can be used for a variety of functions. Firstly, since Facebook is such a widely used platform, it is a prominent place for promoting and marketing (socialmediatoday.com). Additionally, it is also a globally used communication source to connect those with other people around the world who also have a Facebook profile. Overall, Facebook is a good platform to create a brand, keep in touch with family and friends, and follow celebrities. However, it works best on mobile devices, which is a disadvantage to those who access the page on a computer or laptop (crowleymediagroup.com).

Instagram

Similarly to Facebook, Instagram is a popular social media platform that also allows for people to post on their profile pages, gain followers, and follow others. Steadily, the number of Instagram users has increased to a record high of 1.074 billion active users per month and 500 plus active users per day (omnicoreagency.com). The demographics show that the 25-34-year-old age group makes up the age group with the most Instagram users, but it is also apparent that it is popular amongst teens, since 25% of U.S. teenagers say that Instagram is their preferred social media platform (omnicoreagency.com). Supporting this statistic, Khushi Patel (11), a student at YLHS, agrees that “Instagram is the best because you can do more things to connect with your family and friends, but also be aware of what’s happening in the world.” There are unlimited amounts of people, businesses, and sources that people can follow on Instagram, which is a great way to keep up with events around the world, network with people, and just see what people are up to. Just like Facebook, Instagram allows people to set up an account and post photos and videos. Since a big part of Instagram is the sharing of photos, Instagram may not be the best fit for those who do not care for photography or like to express themselves through words. 

TikTok

This relatively new social media platform, founded in 2016, has already become the 7th largest social media platform, with 689 million monthly active users globally (omnicoreagency.com). When looking at teens today, it is hard to imagine a teenager who does not know what TikTok is, since it has become a significant part of this generation. TikTok has quickly become the addiction of Generation Z, which is even shown at YLHS. Nandini Trivedi (10) shares that her favorite social media platform is “TikTok because it’s a way to express yourself throughout music and dance.” To further show how much she likes TikTok, Nandini shares how her “average screen time on TikTok is 5 hours per day.” The reason that TikTok is so appealing to people is because of how different it is from the other high-ranking social media platforms. TikTok uses 15 to 60-second videos to capture the audience’s attention, which is the perfect amount of time before they get bored or lose attention. TikTok is not for everyone, especially since there are limits to the content format, and content is mostly only shared through short videos and not picture and word posts. With the rise of TikTok, there have been many more opportunities for people to share who they are and for them to actually be recognized. 

Twitter

A large amount of the accounts that use Twitter are businesses and brands, since it is a widely used social media platform, with about 330 million people using it daily, making it perfect to promote and market products (crowleymediagroup.com). Twitter is an engaging and successful platform due to it being accessible, easy, and concise. This platform, unlike Instagram or Facebook, does not communicate through posting pictures, but instead by posting shorter messages with up to 140 characters (socialmediatoday.com). In addition, Twitter allows more posts to be sent in a shorter amount of time since the updates are posted in real-time. Another benefit is that Twitter has a retweeting feature that enables people who do not follow an account to see it. To some, a disadvantage of Twitter is the limit of characters (140) that is set, since they may want to add more detail in their tweets, however to others, the limit of characters is an advantage because it keeps the tweets short, clear, and to the point.

Youtube

Much different than the other social media platforms discussed, Youtube is a platform where content is shared through posting videos on a channel (crowleymediagroup.com). Youtube is the second largest search engine, behind Google, and has 2.29 billion active users per month. When using Youtube, it is a great resource to learn since there are all kinds of videos that can be found, but it is more difficult to use it as a platform to post. Those who are not skilled in making videos will have a hard time with Youtube and are not likely to gain a large number of subscribers. The Youtube videos must be of good quality in order to gain views, and since success is tied with the quality of the videos, more money will be spent purchasing the resources that are needed to film (socialmediatoday.com).

Everyone has their own opinion on which social media platform is the best, and these are just some of the popular ones out of many other platforms. Social media can lead to success and be extremely beneficial if people know which platform best suits their needs.