Our survey shows people know Snapchat started Stories—but Facebook might win out anyway
Facebook is at war with Snapchat. That we know.
But what's unclear is how the public -- not just you Mashable readers and social media experts -- views the competition. Is Facebook being unfair, as Victoria Secret model and Snapchat CEO's fiancé Miranda Kerr claimed? Which "Stories" product is better?
Mashable teamed up with Morning Consult to poll adults on the state of Facebook, Snapchat and Stories. In an online survey of 2,202 adults, we determined that Facebook, for sure and in many ways, has an edge in the game. But Snapchat has its place -- and its foundation -- in the land of Stories.
First of all, Snapchat is still credited for the concept of "Stories." About 31 percent of respondents said Snapchat came up with the idea. Facebook had 24 percent and 10 percent for Facebook-owned Instagram. The majority of respondents, 35 percent, chose don't know or had no opinion.
If we narrow it down closer to Snapchat's core audience, 18- to 29-year-olds, Snap gets even more credit. Fifty-four percent of respondents knew that Snapchat launched the Stories format first, compared to 25 percent who responded Facebook and 9 percent who said Instagram.
But beyond the pride of who started it, when it comes to actually using the Stories product, we have a different winner.
According to Morning Consult's survey data, 20 percent said they plan to use Stories and would prefer to use it on Facebook. Unfortunately for Snap, only 12 percent said the same for Snapchat. It's important to note that Facebook has a much larger audience base than Snapchat.
It's important to note for both companies, the majority of users (46 percent) said they don't want to use Stories at all.
The preference for Stories changes if we narrow down to a younger age bracket. Looking at respondents ages 18 to 29, 26 percent said they plan to use Stories and prefer to use Snapchat. Meanwhile, 21 percent said they prefer to use Stories on Facebook and 12 percent said Instagram.
If we compare that to 45- to 54-year-olds, the younger bracket of 18- to 29-years-olds is twice as likely to use the Stories feature.
In summary, the young people -- the kids, you could say -- are into Stories. And those young people aren't giving up on Facebook with 57 percent reporting they're using Facebook more than they did 6 months ago.
What do these kids use Facebook for? It beats out competitors on the majority of key features Morning Consult surveyed about. Out of the respondents, 57 percent said they prefer Facebook for the News Feed and 41 percent said they prefer it for live broadcasting (Snapchat doesn't have live, yet.)
Even for private messaging, Facebook won out, with 58 percent among 18- to 29-year-olds preferring to use Facebook.
But when it comes to disappearing posts and Stories, Snap is still the winner among the younger demographic: 40 percent said they prefer Snapchat.
So, here's some unsolicited advice for Snap: Don't abandon the kids.
Kerry Flynn is a business reporter for Mashable covering the tech industry. She previously reported on social media companies, mobile apps and startups for International Business Times. She has also written for The Huffington Post, Forbes and Money magazine. Kerry studied environmental science and economics at Harvard College, where she led The Harvard Crimson's metro news and design teams and played mellophone in the Band. When not listening to startup pitches, she runs half-marathons, plays with puppies and pretends to like craft beer.
