Let’s get the short answer out of the way first. No, Facebook is not going extinct. Meta has shared its latest performance update, which shows that Facebook added another 27 million users in the most recent quarter, while it also crossed 3 billion monthly active users for the first time, showing that there’s still life in the big blue app yet.
So not only is Facebook not going extinct, it’s actually still quite popular (although the majority of growth is coming from the Asia Pacific region of the world, while growth in the EU and U.S. has largely stalled).
Facebook Revenue
The challenge for Meta, as it is for all social companies, is that while it’s seeing growth in developing regions, it’s still hugely reliant on its established markets for revenue, and it’ll take time before these new users bring in significant profit. And luckily for Facebook, they aren’t struggling in that regard, bringing in $32 billion in Q2 2023, an 11% increase year-over-year.
In terms of ad performance, Meta says that ad impressions delivered across its apps increased by 34% year-over-year in Q2, while the average price per ad decreased by 16%. Meta’s still finding more ad opportunities and developing new placement options, and while more ads could impact the user experience, clearly, the overall usage numbers have remained steady, despite this rise.
At this point you may be wondering… so, should I still run Facebook ads for my business? The answer is absolutely, YES! Take one of our plastic surgery clients, for example, who has been running social ads with us for 4 years. Their main campaign has IMPROVED over the last several years with a cost-per-lead (CPL) of $150.87 in 2023 vs. $180.40 in 2021. Now, could this be because we consistently refine our ads to ensure efficiency? Yes, but we have also noticed a lower starting CPL with their other, newer campaigns over the last several years.
Facebook’s consistent updates to their platform are making advertising increasingly more convenient and effective. It’s not surprising considering they have more social media competitors than ever before, and need to ensure that their ad platforms stay competitive.
Threads
The key highlight for Meta recently has been the launch of its Twitter competitor, Threads, which reached 100 million users in record time, and has helped to reignite interest in Meta’s social offerings.
When TikTok stole Meta’s thunder and became more popular than both Facebook and Instagram as the go-to app for fun and entertaining content (instead of connecting with friends), Meta launched into catch-up mode. Since then, Meta has used similar computer algorithms to show the most interesting content from all their apps, rather than just showing posts from your friends, and they’ve had varying levels of success with this approach. But now, Meta’s back in vogue again, as Twitter/X users view Threads as a fresh take on the real-time social feed.
Given the early enthusiasm for the app, you can bet that Meta will be looking to double down, and as noted, it could end up providing a new, significant ad revenue stream for the company, which would put it back on top of the social media heap.
Considering the uncertainty about TikTok’s future in the United States and the challenges Twitter is facing, Meta has an opportunity to become the top social media company once again. And, Twitter’s recent issues create a chance for Meta to regain its leadership position, even though previously Meta had been focused on its future plans of building the “metaverse.”
The Bottom Line
Given the YOY increase in revenue, the increase in monthly active users, and the introduction of another tool in Facebook/Meta’s toolbelt, it’s very safe to say that Facebook is not going extinct any time soon.
With that in mind, it’s important to keep using all aspects of Facebook. Make sure that you’re posting content consistently, utilizing Stories and Reels, investing in Facebook advertising, and now, utilizing Threads. It can be intimidating to use so many tools on one social media platform, but we can always help. If you have questions about Meta marketing, reach out to our team at iScreamSocialMedia for a free consultation.