After the election, many Americans learned about a new social media platform taking hold—Bluesky. In early November, 1 million people joined Bluesky in a single day, and some experts connected the dots that disgruntled X users were fleeing from the changes Elon Musk had incorporated at X to try Bluesky as an alternative. But, after the initial buzz and skyrocketing growth of Bluesky, what’s next?
Kelley Muhsemann, marketing manager at R.W. Rogé and Company Inc., first heard of Bluesky when her boss insisted she make a profile. “He said that it was growing quickly, and I think as a business owner he just wants to make sure our company stays ahead of the competition and remains relevant,” she says. But she’s always felt reluctant to join newer social media platforms. “I’ve been in the marketing space within the financial services industry for over a decade, and in that time, only one and a half networks outside of Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter have become mainstream—Instagram being one, and TikTok being a half because of its upcoming potential ban in the U.S. In my career, I’ve seen many new and exciting social networks spark and then quickly burn out.”
So, though she did what he asked, especially to ensure she grabbed the handle she might want in the future, she also wrote back, “Happy to post on there, but every few years a new social network tries to break into the ‘big 3,’ and very few have succeeded. We will see how this one goes!” Her apprehension reflects other experts’ views toward what she describes as the “ghost of Twitter past”—Bluesky.
How is Bluesky doing?
The current user count for Bluesky is at over 25.5 million registered users and gaining 0.9 users per second as of this writing. Though this isn’t quite as intense as their early November growth, it’s still substantial. But, by contrast, Threads recently announced it had gained 300 million monthly active users as of mid-December.
According to data by Similarweb, the majority of the current users for Bluesky are in the United States, with 44.5%. Canada and the United Kingdom follow with both at almost 6% of users.
Current monthly visit numbers for Bluesky competitors include Instagram at 5.9 billion and Facebook at 12 billion. Bluesky currently has 4.5 million monthly visits to the site as of November 2024.
While Bluesky did have the No. 1 download spot in the Apple App Store in the week following the election, it didn’t make Apple’s list for the top 20 free downloaded apps in 2024. Some even predict it won’t make the top 100 downloaded apps by the end of 2024.
Why do many X competitors crumble after initial popularity?
Social media experts have been trying to figure out for decades now what makes a social media platform successful, and what makes it crumble. This year clearly indicated that the answer is partially intertwined in politics.
“People have been looking for a Twitter alternative ever since Elon Musk’s takeover; some X haters are politically charged, but some others simply do not enjoy the changes to a platform they’ve been on for years,” says Toni Marino, SEO consultant in Manchester, England. “The data also shows a huge spike right after the U.S. election results were announced…. This shows that a lot of people are simply moving away from X because of the feeling that it doesn’t represent their political beliefs.”
“The main issue I see with other competing platforms is their monetization strategy. I still can’t see how X competitors can charge a subscription fee or get businesses to advertise if they are unable to attract more people than X. A business will simply pay for those types of impressions on the platforms that already have the largest audience,” Marino adds. “X competitors could do well segmenting themselves and really diving deep into the problems of those who are not on X and trying to carve a niche for themselves there, but as it stands, they are all trying to do Twitter V2, which in my opinion is a failing strategy in the long term.”
Bluesky’s wins and challenges
With new platforms come new hesitations. Muhsemann says though profiles and content creation are quite simple on Bluesky, there can be other challenges. “In the financial industry the issue is more so the ‘red tape.’ Can I post content on Bluesky? Twelve years ago, financial advisers couldn’t ‘like’ anything on Facebook because it was considered an endorsement. Today, we have a bit more freedom on social media, but anything new presents possible limitations in the financial world,” she says.
Starter packs are by far one of the most well-loved aspects unique to Bluesky. Instead of hunting and pecking for your favorite sports stars in the search bar, for example, starter packs give you access to themed sets of profiles to follow with one click.
Among the “Twitter Quitters,” CNET reports, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Star Wars star Mark Hamill have joined the site. And for those wishing for the Twitter of yesterday, The New York Times says Bluesky has come the closest of them all to imitating it. Depending who you are, and what social media resonates with you, that can either be a win or a problem.
In a press release, Marino predicted Bluesky will need to differentiate itself from X somehow if it wants to thrive, perhaps by focusing on its left-of-center values. Bluesky did not respond to a request for comments on their next steps.
Muhsemann says, “There’s also something to be said for the way Instagram, YouTube and TikTok pushed their way to the top. As skeptical as I am, you never know which up-and-coming social platform might be the next big hit.”
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