Gen Z Seems A Little More Into Snapchat Than Instagram Stories

August 24, 2018

This article is included in these additional categories:

Demographics & Audiences | Digital | Social Media | Teens & Younger | Youth & Gen X

Give a slight upper hand to Snapchat over Instagram in the Stories war, if results from a VidMob survey are to be trusted. In its research, conducted among 1,000 16-24-year-olds in the US, VidMob found that Snapchat (73%) edged Instagram (70%) for consumption of Stories. The real gap, though, was in creation of content for Stories on these platforms.

Fully 58% of Gen Z respondents reported posting Snapchat Stories, as opposed to 39% posting Instagram Stories.

As for Facebook Stories? Just one-third (34%) of Gen Z respondents reported watching them, and far fewer (13%) reported creating them.

These results generally fall in line with broader social media preferences among teens, which tend to favor Snapchat over Instagram, with Facebook far further back. (Teens generally identify Snapchat as their most-used platform, too.)

It’s A Different Story For Millennials

Millennials display different preferences than their younger counterparts, according to an accompanying VidMob survey of 1,000 25-34-year-olds.

Instead of Snapchat edging ahead, it’s Instagram instead that gets the nod for Stories consumption, with 60% of these older respondents consuming Stories on the platform, versus 53% for Snapchat.

Notably, though, even older Millennials are more likely to create Stories on Snapchat (34%) than on Instagram (31%).

It may be then that Snapchat is simply a more popular medium for posting Stories than Instagram, with that gap more prevalent the younger the user.

Interestingly Facebook isn’t so far behind for Millennials (as defined in this survey): almost half (48%) reported watching Facebook Stories. Facebook’s struggles seem to be with teens more than older Millennials: one study suggests teen use of Facebook may have peaked. And as a more recent survey found, teens who adopted Facebook at an early age don’t appear to be abandoning it at a higher rate as they graduate high school. Rather, the declines in Facebook’s use have come by way of muted early adoption among 14-15-year-olds, who instead show a far greater proclivity to use Snapchat and Instagram.

How Can Brands Be Relevant?

There appears to be some room for brands, at least on Instagram: in a survey of 2,400 Instagram users ages 13-55 in the US, Facebook IQ found that one-third had become more interested in a brand or product after seeing it on Instagram Stories. In fact, brand content is more valued in Stories than in the Feed, according to the Instagram users surveyed.

It’s instructive also for brands to understand what personalization means to younger generations: in its study, VideoMob notes that similar style and taste are more important than celebrities and influencers in their appeal to Gen Z consumers and Millennials.

Brands can also take their cues from the types of videos that are most popular with these generations, led by how-to’s, tutorials and hacks. Vlogs are also popular videos to watch on smartphones among Gen Z, followed by pranks.

As for the best Stories? Don’t lose the comedic value, as humor is valued most.

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