Facebook has stepped up their position on the web and I don’t know if everyone really knows the impact. With the scare of paying for facebook, situating privacy policies, addiction of games, and app development, the momentum has been building. Recent reports show the social networking site is the most visited, most accessed, and most active, surpassing Google search and Youtube video browsing. This feat puts them number one, without all the trophies, lights, and first place ribbons. We all learned this, and just shrugged it, like “interesting!”. However, with recent launch of new features in the last few days, I’ve come to the conclusion that Facebook is in a super position to takeover. The new features include eliminating “Fan Pages”, and simply refer to them as “Likes”. Why? Look at myspace, they’re music related and commonly have fans. Looks like facebook has realized myspace is no match and have became a new platform of its own. The “Like” button is popular, it’s quick and easy way to give an opinion as self expression is growingly popular.
Facebook has also launched the collaboration of this “Like” feature with everyone’s profile, listing interest and activities as active links. Now the “info section” tab has active links to pages. Now lets talk about these pages, which is the reason I decided to do a blog post. These pages are powerful as they give more detail of our common interests. We would usually search for a Page or Group, but now, this pages are listed as interest in our info section. The layout has changed as well, giving us more organization and want to fill out personal info. The company stated their goal was for everyone to use their ‘real identity’ and connect with friends. This now give facebook a first class ticket into our own real lives as we embrace the technology and ‘fun’ with social networking so quickly. So now with our real interest listed in profiles, these new pages will instantly be accessible and exposed to our networks. The gives the old fan pages power, to grow and connect others fast.
The reason its so important is because this is the basis of advertising. Grouping people creates instant ‘markets’, which is powerful for businesses. I expect eCommerce, online marketers, and new media advertising to start incorporating facebook even more. Businesses with “pages” can gather “Likes” and stay posted with a link in the user’s profile, which may be exposed to hundreds or thousands of their friends. And lastly, there is a secret sauce about this Like button. As we now enter more personal info from the new profile editing, our interest are automatically suggest to a keyword which creates the link (to fb pages). Now this link is not only to fb pages, but gives information about what it actually is. It extracts wikipedia, gives data of how many people ‘Like’ it too, and even shows recent post about the topic (from friends & globally). I recently added social media as one of my interest and it features a gray icon, as implying a general keyword. It also new with only 300 people there, no wall present, and a tab of strictly wikipedia info about the topic. This is reinventing the web. We are now given power to do everything from ‘inside facebook’. It gives search engine power as well as info seeking power. Add this our everyday life portrayed on a social networking website. It has become the center of a web universe.
Google, the advertising kings, managed to make a cool algorithm for a search engine and brand their name on nearly every website on the net, is an amzing feat. Google is battling other giants to really even have a shot at regaining it’s throne, but I think their profits will grow even by not being “so popular”. Google is now in smartphone business, competing with Apple who is growing as well. Google has Microsoft making a comeback and Yahoo who is lingering but could always get a second boost (i like underdogs). I like Adobe as well, but Apple is cutting them out, hindering their growth and opportune. Google will most likely take more marketshare in consumer electronics, Microsoft will put out more phones and focus on software, and Apple will build a web marketplace. How about Ning and Yahoo join teams or Gaming companies make more gaming devices or online web markets. We’ll see!
My other eye is on Ning.com who recently is gonna stop their free services and charge users. The company has invoked a now or never strategy, but seems promising with their growing interest in web apps and empowering user to create their own networks. The stats show majority of Ning’s traffic is from some superstar profiles, which may not mind paying money after the successful from the platform. I don’t know how the numbers pan out, but they should make some money to stay around for another launch of a feature or press release.
The newest conferences indicate a notion of “augmented reality” which is basically making the real world, virtual to an extent. Imagine binoculars that zoomed into an object and then a pop up displayed a wiki page to describe it. Or how about taking a picture with your cell phone and getting the longitude and latitude. These are big projects in the future, but more recently we see technology invited into our lifestyle, daily routine, and providing info as in learning and communication as well. Virtual world here we come and my bet is through more apps, first mobile and maybe small devices like ipad & similar.
UPDATE::: FACEBOOK INTERVIEW!
SOCIAL MEDIA STATISTICS
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Check out NEWS on Social Media that we recommend:
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How Facebook’s Newest Feature Could Change the Internet Atlantic Online
Apple Fires Back at Adobe in Flash Fiasco
- PlayStation to Stream Pro Baseball New York Times
- FCC remains mum on broadband reclassification CNET
- ARM boss pours cold water on Apple bid rumours after shares soar The Guardian
- Microsoft Connects Office To Facebook InformationWeek
- Google acquires startup Agnilux, stirs Android tablet rumors
- Facebook Accounts for 41% of Social Web Traffic Softpedia
- Facebook? Twitter? Microsoft tops social media use-survey
Great links for learning:
Elucid Marketing Group 