Ah, the good ol’ days. Remember when social networking first became a thing? Now it’s part of almost everyone’s daily routine. How often have you found yourself checking your Facebook before responding to your mother’s text message? But let’s not forget where this all started. It’s Throwback Thursday and it’s time to pay tribute to 3 social media sites that got left behind.
Xanga: Launched in 1998, Xanga was one of the first social media sites to gain traction. It was primarily a blogging site, but users utilized features like adding photos of themselves, posting about friends and products, and to talk to friends and meet new ones! Though it began as a site for sharing reviews of book and music, it eventually became something that people used to subscribe to others so that they could stay updated on their lives. Eventually, sites like Friendster and MySpace (Now Myspace) came about to leave Xanga in the dust. Though some users still exist, the site doesn’t get a whole lot of visits or activity anymore.
Friendster: After Xanga came Friendster. Friendster was launched in 2002, and essentially took what Xanga was used for and made its mission much more clear and concise. Instead of being a blogging based site, it was meant for social networking. People enjoyed using it to connect with people all over, rather than just those in their hometown.
Myspace: What’s your URL? I’ll friend request you. In 2004, MySpace took over the social networking game. It left sites like Friendster and Xanga behind and made social networking totally customizable by allowing users to create their own layouts, find new people via a “New Members” and browse tool, all while incorporating the age old chat room idea. Essentially, it took what every other social networking site and application had done and put it onto one cohesive and gorgeous platform. Over the years it developed into something that became a daily habit for its users. Until eventually advertising and spam became overwhelming on the site and users moved over to a much cleaner social networking platform with less abrasive advertisements, Facebook. Since then, MySpace has tried to revive and redesign itself time after time, but has never been able to come back up to the top in terms of users and traffic.
In a world where social networking keeps growing, these sites may not have made it, but it’s important to notice the sites that do (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest). By utilizing the sites that have the most daily traffic and provide appropriate advertising capabilities, your business can reach the audience it’s meant to reach. With a proper social media marketing strategy, your business will also only be advertised on the sites that are current, as almost no social media platform is destined to be popular forever.
Want to talk more about the uses of popular social networking sites? Call (855) 599-9998 or email sales@trafficjams.com and a social media specialist will assist you.
