The Web: Tumblr Adds Unique Twist to Social Networking

People love the idea of social media. Today's technology makes it easy to connect with old friends from the past, and keep in touch with new friends.
Facebook allows you to chat, post pictures, and even give your information to those you are friends with. Twitter allows you to follow celebrities and see what they're up to.
Although these are the two most popular social networks to this point, a new network known as Tumblr seems to be joining them in popularity among young adults. Just like any other site, Tumblr allows you to stay connected with friends and celebrities, but it also allows users to express themselves through a blog.
Tumblr was launched in August of 2007, and within two weeks of the launch, there were already 75,000 users. Tumblr is a private corporation that is run by only 104 employees. It has increased visitors by 218 percent in the past two years.
The headquarters are located in Manhattan, New York. The company describes Tumblr as the easiest tool to publish your own blog. Users can effortlessly share text, photos, quotes, links, music, and videos from your computer or phone.
As of July 18, 2012, Tumblr had over 64.7 million blogs, and had over 29.8 billion posts. The services are most popular with teen and college age users under the age of 25. As of 2009, Tumblr had an 85 percent retention rate, compared with a 40 percent retention rate for Twitter.
In early June 2012, Tumblr featured its first major brand advertising campaign in conjunction with Adidas. The company has raised over $85 million in funding from investors. Tumblr popularity is apparent by its becoming the first blogging platform to host President Obama's blog.
What makes Tumblr unique is the simple fact that you create your own profile; it's not like the standard Facebook or Twitter layouts. Users have freedom; they can post videos, documents they have written, and pictures they have taken. In a sense, Tumblr allows users to express their everyday passions.
Users are given hundreds of options for colors, layouts, fonts, and designs for their profiles. People with passions for art seem to enjoy this because they can really show off their music, drawing, designs, or photography.
The site has been rated very highly due to the photography people post on it. Reviews also state that users appreciate Tumblr more than Facebook and Twitter from a professional standpoint because they are given more freedom on Tumblr than the average network.
Tumblr does have some disadvantages though; it is a blog, so it's not made for chatting and finding information the way other social networks are. Rather, Tumblr connects through both Twitter and Facebook. When you update your Tumblr, it notifies your friends and followers on other social networks.
Tumblr is relatively new to the networking world, but it won't be long until many bloggers sign up for a free profile.