Facebook has always been the leading social media platform. However, as more and more people around the world started to use smartphones and tablets to access their Facebook account, the company had to respond, and it certainly seems to have done this very well. In fact, with an estimated 1.31bn mobile users accessing Facebook, the social media platform has risen in popularity over the past couple of years. Not only that, but the company also revealed that some 76% of its advertising revenue was actually now coming from mobile devices. With ad revenues hitting an all-time record, the social network is certainly doing well.
Facebook’s revenues have in fact exceeded expectations made by analysts, by earning $4.04bn against a forecasted $2.91bn. Despite this though, there has been a fall of 4.2% in the company’s shares, and an 82% increase in costs and expenses when compared to the same period last year. However, with its considerable investment in mobile advertising, and the acquisition of Instagram and WhatsApp, which are both doing very well, with 300m and 700m users respectively.
The company also pointed out that its profits margins could be affected by its current investment strategy. But analysts still believe that this will actually help to create substantial revenues in the future.
In fact the push towards mobile platforms is already paying dividends for the social network. The company’s share price when trading closed in New York last Wednesday stood at $96.99. Thus the company is valued at $276.4bn!
Video adverts are Facebook’s fastest-growing advertising category. The company knew how to respond well to the increase in the use of the internet by mobile users. For Facebook engagement is everything, and it is one of the main reasons why Marc Zuckerberg decided to buy WhatsApp. Holding a bigger mobile base was key to Facebook’s success. Zuckerberg also commented on his hopes that Facebook’s commitment to make good response to the mobile revolution is felt mostly in the developing world.
According to one of the conference organisers at the Barcelona Mobile World Congress, the internet community is taking mobile very seriously, and this is one of the reasons behind the record growth that was registered in mobile use. This was obviously put to very good use by Facebook.
This mobile revolution was certainly not grasped that well by Twitter. Unlike Facebook, this social network is not doing that well. In fact they are trying to come up with ways to attract more users, because even though their latest revenues were higher than expected, they are experiencing a downfall in active users.
Facebook on the other hand, does not seem to have any problem at all with that. With the staggering 1.4bn monthly users, there is no denying that this social network is really going strong and there does not seem to be any rival as strong as that just yet!
