Facebook, An Online Marketing Tool

Facebook, an international social-networking website, was founded by Harvard University students: Mark Zuckerberg, Eduardo Saverin, Dustin Moskovitz, and Chris Hughes in January of 2004. The previous October, founder and CEO, Zuckerberg, had launched the controversial Facemash, which the university shut down just a few days later due to security breaches, copyright violations, and privacy violations. Upon completion of the site, Zuckerberg and his co-founders offered The Facebook (as it was originally known) services to the Kirkland House online mailing list. Several dozen people joined from there, and then, word of mouth spread the rest. According to Dustin Moskovitz, “Within twenty-four hours, we had somewhere between twelve hundred and fifteen hundred registrants (1).” Today, this online tool serves more than 350 million active users, expanded from its original invitation only to students in the Boston area, the Ivy League, and Stanford University. Further, this website offers free services to anyone over the age of 13.

For many consumers, Facebook provides the means of staying in touch with family and friends, without having to create a personal blog. However, for many businesses, Facebook acts as an online marketing tool. Facebook accomplishes this feat in three ways.

First, Facebook provides free services to its users. How can an entity accomplish this? Like many other online websites, Facebook derives profits from online advertising called banner ads or web banners. This form of online advertising occurs by images popping up on the sidebars of web pages, typically utilizing some form of animation or sound to draw in a consumer. Most affiliates are paid on a cost-per-click basis and as a result, all means are used to attract attention to these ads. These banner ads generate more traffic to brand websites, which increases sales and the potential thereof. Although, this may annoy some users, the results speak for themselves.

The next way, which Facebook successfully acts as an effective online marketing tool, stems from the social networking aspect of this website. Aside from personal pages, one can join community groups designed by the “city, workplace, school, or region (1)”. This online marketing tool engages consumers with different brands and platforms. Individuals can join groups or causes, which are important to them, and receive daily, hourly, and even minutely updates. Again, this acts as a great instrument in the marketing world. Brand sites can send invitations and updates for different events once consumers have joined their group. One such example is a fan website. A consumer requests to join the group, is accepted, and then, each time the website updates any information about upcoming venues or releases of products, the consumer will see it on her “wall.” This further engages consumers, because they feel like they are on a more intimate and personal level with said brand. They hear the news for the brand first, and again, feel like they are on a more personal level.

The third greatest online marketing advantage occurs with “word of mouth.” Anytime a person logs into her Facebook account, she views her “wall,” which acts like her personal homepage, and traffic feed, which consists of anyone whom she is “friends” with. Anytime a friend adds an update, it shows on her traffic feed. The more “friends” you have, the larger your social network is going to be. For businesses, this can be really good because it acts as a free marketing tool. Consumers will post about brands they enjoy or questions about brands. Often times, individuals will advocate new movies or new products on the market. Again, Facebook provides effective online marketing here.

The downfall comes with limited audiences. Yes, 350 million active users is a tremendous accomplishment. However, not everyone is going to view every advertisement placed on the sidebar, because there is no way to navigate every page. Not everyone is going to click on the image they view on the side of their individual page. Businesses will not be able to reach every consumer this way. Also, not everyone belongs to Facebook. There are some obstacles here, but like any other form of marketing, strategies come into play and provide ways around these shortcomings.

Overall, Facebook provides ample online marketing opportunities for companies to effectively market their brands in inexpensive ways. Companies would be wise to consider implementing Facebook, Inc. into their marketing campaign.

Written by: Ravi 01/04

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