Why social web site activity continues to decline

Social networking sites (including narrow social networks and micro-blogs) meet the needs of modern people, and have become one of the most important platforms for social and other activities on the Internet, but also face the problem of user churn, in recent years, the percentage of user activity has dropped higher, according to CNNIC survey found that Social networking sites have fallen by as much as 23.5% in the past year, and Weibo has reached 22.8%. Many factors lead to the decline of social networking site activity, specific performance in the following areas:

1. That "social networking sites waste time" is the primary reason for the decline in the activity of netizens. Of the people who are less active, 43.1% think it is a waste of time and a 40.1% of Twitter's use of social networking sites. The basic function of social networking sites is to meet people's social needs, but in order to attract users, this is based on the addition of many functions such as games. Many functions in attracting users at the same time, did not give users a real effect. When some users think such applications are not essential, they reduce usage and lead to decreased activity.

2. The emergence of other alternative applications has reduced the time spent on social networking sites of some netizens. Less than 32.6% of netizens who use social networking sites have switched to micro-letters, 20.3% have switched to microblogs, and 37.4% of those who have reduced their use of microblogs have shifted to micro-letters. In addition, other similar applications have been substituted for social applications.

3. Internet users use social networking sites for a long time without a sense of freshness. This accounts for less than 35.2% of Internet users who use social networking sites and 33.2% for microblogs. For individuals, the use of any application for a long time may be a lack of freshness, the use of heat decline. The key to the enterprise's continued lock-in of users is to make such applications a necessity for users (such as search engines, instant messaging tools, etc.). But social networking sites can be very fungible, mainly because individual social circles may change over time, and the same circle can shift to other applications, allowing some netizens to gradually reduce or even abandon the use of social networking sites.

4. Furthermore, the lack of interaction with friends is also an important reason. Fewer friends, or no response to messages, can reduce the motivation of Internet users to use social networking sites and microblogs. For a single social web site, the decline in activity is a vicious cycle: a decline in overall activity – a decline in the enthusiasm of individuals to log on to social networking sites – and a further decline in overall activity. Because social networking sites have to be a group use behavior, and personal interest in social networking sites depends on the group's interest in social networking sites, individuals cannot use social networks independently of others. So, if users feel that their friends are less updated, they are more motivated to use social networking sites.

These factors are the main reasons for the decline in social networking sites, for social networking sites, to solve these problems for the retention of users, maintain user activity is critical.