The early part of Q3 was obviously owned by Google+, but this month, Facebook turned the tides as it unveiled one new feature after another. Earlier this month, it was the launch of the Subscription button that enables the one-way follows for users within the network. Last week, it was the ticker that emerged and news feed ramifications which presented the feed interface as newspaper. Update after update, it all rolls out on the feed and on the infamous ticker as well. An amalgam of reviews and rants were trending on the Web. Little that we know, the largest social network in the planet is launching something big yet again.
Meanwhile, at the F8 Conference...
Each new feature seemed to be a part of a bigger picture. And then came Thursday's Facebook F8 conference for developers and marketers, the Facebook User Timeline is finally unveiled. Aside from SNL's Andy Samberg cameo posing as Mark Zuckerberg's clone, the F8 conference rolled out new fantastic designs, cutting-edge media sharing tools, and most of all, announcing to the audience how the Timeline User profile will be the new frontier of sharing. Facebook's take on their latest feature:
Back in the early days of Facebook, your profile was pretty basic - just your name, a photo, where you went to school...stuff you'd cover in the first five minutes you met someone. Over time, your profile evolved to better reflect how you actually communicate with your friends. The way your profile works today, 99% of the stories you share vanish. The only way to find the posts that matter is to click "Older Posts" at the bottom of the page. Again. And again. With timeline, now you have a home for all the great stories you've already shared. They don't just vanish as you add new stuff.
Mark Zuckerberg says, "Timeline is the story of your life." For users, the Timeline is a user's graphic history shared to his network, not only does it serve as your online ID, it's a mirror that reflects your personality with a storytelling approach. But for marketers and developers, it's more than that. The Timeline presents a plethora of opportunities for revenue generation.
From Likes to More Shares
Brands and businesses have always been in a struggle to garner hordes of fans to their Facebook pages. The F8 conference suggested that such phase for social brand management is passe already, and that Shares now matter more than Likes. Content is what fuels social networks. A business' fan page with 10k fans is nothing without content to pave way for user engagement. And user engagement requires social actions that a Facebook user can relate to and notice whenever he sees it on his feed or ticker.
For instance, if a user digs DC Comics, why not place a Read button to its fan page itself? Every Facebook fan page has always been a collaborative channel which has a need to be directed or managed. Brands should now look for fresh and unique ways for fans to engage with each other in order to result into more sharing.
With more sharing, a brand's content is syndicated within the social network. Thus, brand awareness is increased and the business becomes more visible. The Timeline compels marketers to really think like publishers now, why? Because revenue lies on how viral your content is.
Facebook is Officially a Marketplace
When my colleagues and I first saw the ticker, I thought that it is a great enhancement to Facebook's ad platform which will put a smile to marketers' faces. At the F8 conference, developers and marketers are treated to something even better. Zuckerberg and friends detailed how the Open Graph Beta will enhance information sharing through various apps used by Facebook users. The new expansion was demonstrated through the Spotify music integration but merely suggested that users can share what they are listening to with their friends.
Well, it's more than that, it will soon be considered as a breakthrough function because it will be the linchpin for real-time advertising. The social network with 750 million users being used by marketers to make brands viral and visible? You can just imagine how broad the reach is, and with every Timeline User profile, brands and marketers can pinpoint where to send theirs ads to. Facebook is now officially a marketplace. Expect targeted offers to come your way soon because this is how the Facebook ecosystem works. All of your personalized content is on your Facebook account, right? It just became Facebook's asset.
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