What U.S. consumers think about Facebook's new look

Mark Zuckerberg recently unveiled a huge change at Facebook:you must now address the 17-year-old company as "Meta."

Now, that's a huge change for a company worth $912 billion. How is the American public taking it? With over 1.5M members, Eureka Surveys has a unique pulse on U.S. consumer opinion. We had to ask our members what they thought about Facebook's new look. Our survey collected over 450 responses from U.S. consumers. Here's what they had to say:

"It doesn't affect me"

Nearly 36% of survey responders neither disliked nor liked the name change. Many responders expressed neutrality, finding the name an inconsequence to their interactions with the app. Only three percent of responders characterized the move as a rebranding attempt "due to bad press." One responder wrote, "As long as I can keep my same info and keep in contact with my friends and family, it doesn't matter."

In fact, nearly 77% of survey responders said that they would continue to use Facebook after its name change. Even among the naysayers (or those who either "dislike" or "hate" Facebook's new name), 54% expressed that they would continue to use Facebook.

Why use Facebook

Many of our members primarily use Facebook to connect with their families. However, those who identify as Gen Z (15 to 24 years of age) are more likely than any other age group to use Facebook to watch videos. On the other hand, "Sharing personal photos" is the second most popular use among Millennials (25 to 34 years of age) and Gen X (35 - 59 years of age) members.

With its new name, Facebook intends to be the one-stop shop, or "Metaverse," where users can connect with family and friends, sell items, watch or read the news, play games, etc. It wants to go "beyond social media." However, given the data, most of our users use Facebook as a social media app. They want to share photos rather than play games or find their next partner via Facebook Dating.

The final word

Facebook has plans to invest more in augmented and virtual reality. Zuckerberg hopes that Meta will be the future "online world where people can game, work and communicate in a virtual environment."

If Mark Zuckerberg intended to impress users or change the public's perception of Facebook, he'll need to try harder. Facebook, or Meta, is still very much a social media app in the eyes of U.S. consumers. Many neither dislike nor like the name and find the name change inconsequential to their own interactions with the app.

To learn more, or to see the survey results, click here.