Is Facebook getting older?

If the latest Nielsen stats are correct, then it appears to be growing more quickly than ever in the 35-49 age group. Being 30 myself, I have never seen Facebook as the preserve of the young – I think this is more to do with the image Facebook would like to give off than what it actually is. From the stats I have seen recently with Habbo – the first port of call for a younger audience is Bebo with Facebook seeming to be the preserve of the student population and older.

Does it really matter if Facebook gets older? A recent presenation that I saw suggested that the older audience and younger audience have two very different ways of using FB. The younger audience use Facebook to give quick updates, so their status is their most important asset. They love to comment on other people’s status. The younger audience uses networks like park benches, a place to hangout, jockey for status, gossip etc.

The older audience visit less regularly but are more involved when they do visit. They are more likely to reply to messages than reply on people’s walls. They are much more curious about people and look up those from their past.

It doesn’t seem a major issue to me that Facebook is getting older, in fact it probably enhances the site content overall. Bringing more non-youth brands to the “square”, creating more interesting conversations flows, and pages.  I think its a good thing but then I am edging towards 35…. older audience pah!