Developments with LinkedIn & Twitter Signal Further Doom For Facebook

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Don’t be surprised. If you are a big fan of Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), it may be shocking to you. According to a recent survey on customer satisfaction/loyalty measurements for E-business sector by ACSI, the satisfaction score for social media sites were pathetic, and Facebook was the worst performer.

You will find in the above image, that Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) is at the bottom with 61 points. The other two sites, LinkedIn, and Twitter, are just above Facebook with 63 and 64 points respectively. That’s not all, Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) is down five points since the2011 survey, and now it is in bottom 2 percent of all the companies monitored by ACSI.

What’s Wrong With Facebook, & Why Do LinkedIn & Twitter Have An Edge?

Well, Larry Freed, the President and CEO of ForeSee (a partner for ACSI’s E-Business survey), said that most of the Facebook users are irritated over the new “Timeline” feature, privacy concerns, and the ads that distract them. These issues have been widely criticized, but  still they persist.

In the above image, you can see that Twitter and Linkedin Corporation (NYSE:LNKD) aren’t doing great either. However, it’s the commitment that matters in the end. LinkedIn has now updated its home page design to offer a better user experience, and will soon add notifications. “You’ll never miss a comment or update to an engaging discussion about a news article or trending topic on LinkedIn,” the company said. A Linkedin Corporation (NYSE:LNKD) representative said that the company is committed to delivering value to its users and advertisers.

That’s what is missing at Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), where Mark Zuckerberg’s creative ideas are implemented without much thought. Facebook is concerned more about advertisers than users, that’s why it is pushing the “innovations” such as Timeline down the throats of users. Since the Facebook IPO debacle in May, its stocks have plunged 51 percent, whereas, LinkedIn has climbed 14 percent in the same period.

ACSI says that loyal users stick to a particular brand even when they have a choice. Facebook users are dissatisfied but they don’t have a choice yet. Therefore they are stuck. When LinkedIn, Twitter, or Google+ reach a critical mass, people will start switching. Then Facebook can do whatever it wants without giving a damn about its users.

The micro-blogging site, Twitter is taking every opportunity to capture more users. According to the Wall Street Journal, hundreds and thousands of users tweet per second when there is some big news or significant event. For example, 12,230 tweets were recorded per second during the 2012 Super Bowl.

Twitter isn’t a dumb spectator. The company is exploiting every opportunity of big news and events to grow. You’ll find hundreds of examples, such as Arab Spring, Japanese earthquake, death of Michael Jackson, killing of Osama Bin Laden, celebrity gossips, and many more. In the same wave, it tied up with NBC during the London Olympics to deliver the latest developments to people. It poses a real threat to Facebook. One out of every ten Internet users around the world uses Twitter, and the company recorded 59% growth from 2010 to 2011.

Another worry for Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) is a report by social media analysis firm, Trendrr. It found that Twitter drove 75% of social activities on TV programs, compared to Facebook’s meager 16 percent in the first quarter of 2012. Twitter is a big threat to Facebook because it compliments media. Politicians and celebrities use Twitter to reach their followers/supporters. Creating and maintaining strategic partnerships and campaigns with broadcast TV media will further help the company grow.

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