The most used social networks in each country have varied significantly over time.
Among the latest studies carried out by various companies, there is a significant gap as regards the most popular social networks worldwide.
It is with naturalness that we find Facebook topping the list in all studiesbut the differences start as early as position 2. While some studies point to Twitter as the social network to follow, others already place Google+ right after Facebook.
And to note that Facebook, created in 2004, is already the main social network in many countries since 2007. In Portugal, it only became so in December 2009 (overtaking hi5 at the time), and in Brazil only in January 2012 (overtaking Orkut), thus being one of the countries with one of the slowest penetrations.
Some of the factors behind the discrepancies found in the studies are the criteria most valued by the studies, such as the number of existing users, who visited the site in the last month (considered as active) or the number of pages viewed.
In order to understand these differences we present the 15 most popular social networks, according to 2 studies.
By eBizMBA, whose information is based on the Alexa website in February 2013, the 15 most popular social networks are:
- Facebook
- Twitter
- LinkedIn
- Pinterest
- MySpace
- Google+
- DevianArt
- LiveJournal
- Tagged
- Orkut
- CafeMom
- Ning
- Meetup
- myLife
- Multiply
Considering the GlobalWebIndex study the most popular are:
- Facebook
- Google+
- YouTube
- Twitter
- Qzone (China)
- Sina Weibo (China)
- Tencent (China)
- Youku (China)
- Todou (China)
- LinkedIn
- RenRen (China)
- Tecent Weibo (China)
- 51.com (China)
- MySpace
- Badoo
A very relevant fact in this latest study is the fact that in the 15 social networks more popular if you find 8 Chinese.
Among the social networks that show the most growth, studies also vary widely. Some of the social networks noted as having the highest growth are:
- Google+
- SlideShare
- Twitter
- Pinterest
- Ozone
- Tecent Weibo
- Sina Weibo
One of the points on which the most varied studies are unanimous is the fact that they point out that the current and future trend will be towards a resounding rise that international and thematic social networks will begin to have.
Thematic social networks or niches, are characterised by offering functionalities much more focused on the communities to which they are dedicatedcompared to what they offer social networks generalists.
The platform ud121 social is a complete solution for create a social network or niche communities on the internetAmplitude Net offers the market for create your social network.
Sources: comScore Media Metrix, Marketest, Pplware, eBizMBA, Alexa