Yahoo bought blogging site Tumblr and we're bound to see some changes. Here are some of the things we can expect to see as a result of the deal.
New Sign-ups, But Decrease In Loyal Users
It's important to remember that Tumblr has its own following, although it may not be comparable to Facebook or Twitters user base. These loyal users post and repost on a daily basis, uploading new images and GIFs religiously for their followers to reblog or comment on. Most of them belong to a tight-knit group of bloggers who loves the same things and blogs about the same topics. These people also want to keep Tumblr the way it is; Yahoos intrusion will probably lead them to part ways with the social platform. Reaction from longtime Tumblr users is generally negative as they fear possible implementation of restrictions on posts, monetization efforts, unwanted ads, subscriptions, and many more.
Yahoo would also means going mainstream and the total Tumblr experience could be overhauled to cater to younger audiences and the latest social media trends.
Yahoo Gets A Legit Social Media Platform, Loses A Billion
Yahoo is old; it has been on the Internet since, well, the dawn of the Internet. Try as it may, it's finding it hard to attract a younger audience to use its services and applications. It can act as a search engine but doesn't compare with the likes of Google or even Bing. The best way for Yahoo to thrive is to find something that would attract younger users, a void that Tumblr will hopefully fill up. Majority of Tumblrs users come from the 18-24 age bracket, the exact demographic Yahoo is aiming to attract. It is a legitimate social platform, and has retained a sizable user base even after years of existence.
The thing is, Yahoo will be parting ways with more than a billion dollars, a staggering amount enough to launch new projects and internet campaigns many times over. They can start from scratch with that kind of money, just like what Google did with their Google+ social networking site. If Yahoo followed suit, they would have several hundred million dollars left to pursue other projects. Apparently, they don't want to risk the chance that a new social network would flop, so they just put their bet on Tumblr.
The fate of Tumblr-on-Yahoo will be determined by those who are interested in trying out a new social networking platform. Yahoo needs to package this blogging site into something that can retain most of its loyal bloggers and attract new users to sign up and stay.