Despite no longer being the latest thing, Facebook is still a force to be reckoned with in the social media world. As the social network's membership base continues to expand, businesses still sitting on the sidelines would be well advised to get on board with social media marketing.
According to a recent study from marketing news provider eMarketer, Facebook's user base is expected to grow by 13.4 percent this year. This may be a slim margin of growth compared to 90.3 percent growth in 2009, but it shows that, despite the emergence of new players, Facebook remains a popular service for consumers and a potentially lucrative marketing tool for businesses.
Similarly, Twitter is expected to see its membership grow by 26.3 percent this year, eMarketer estimated. Though this growth is lower than in previous years, usage remains high and opportunities for businesses to bolster their brands on the microblogging site are still abundant. According to figures from a recent GlobalWebIndex study, 45 percent of microblog users post an opinion on a product or brand each day.
The lower growth of Facebook and Twitter this year may be expected, given that both social networks have been around for some time and already boast high membership. Further impacting the trend is the emergence of Google+, which reportedly saw its user base reach 11 million in its first six weeks and has since grown to more than 25 million.
Future success on the social marketing front will likely depend on how companies embrace new innovations. As Brafton recently reported, a study from research firm Gartner found social media use is growing among younger audiences, but users are demanding new and fresh content that capture their attention instantly.
