An interesting development on the web happened today. Reddit just passed Facebook as #3 most popular website in the US. This was no small feat for the Reddit engineering team who have also juggled a site re-design. As the Facebook deals with an Exodus, I suspect that new user sign-ups have slowed for the Silicon Valley giant as well.
On average, Reddit users spend 15 minutes and 10 seconds on it every day, a figure substantially higher than its competitors. Google users spend 7 minutes 16 seconds, You’veTube 8 minutes 31 seconds, Facebook 10 minutes 50 seconds and Amazon 7 minutes 37 seconds on the sites each day.
This isn’t great news for Facebook on the face of things. The social media company’s audience is aging and shifting to other platforms and, with the Cambridge Analytica scandal, the company’s lost a lot of sheen.
It really just comes down to two factors: time and traffic.
Facebook has millions of backlinks over their rival Reddit, but people enjoy the fresh and open content. Snoo’s tribes will continue to grow as Facebook’s users age, linger and mob.
I have long been a fan and user of Reddit. I may not enjoy everything I come across on Reddit, but alas is the beauty of their unique paradigms that help keep my feed fresh:
- Useful Bots (most of the time, clearly labeled as such)
- Subreddit Flairs (great for improving comment threads and context)
- Up-voting and down-voting
- Karma (helps identify trolls and patron saints of Reddit easily)
- A never-ending battle to squash bullshit on Reddit
I love Reddit. It’s been through some tough times, and still is wrangling with problematic subreddits, but that’s the cost of a great product and an even better community. It takes real work to cultivate and grow a healthy internet community. I really think Facebook held that title up until 2011 with their first set of re-design efforts. But somewhere along the way Facebook lost their soul and lost their focus.
Here’s to Snoo. You earned it. 🏆 Now get out there and upvote!
