Date: 16 February, 2008 - 08:25
It seems like this question is being kicked around more and more lately. If you're active online at all, you've seen people talk about it. If you've been to any web conferences, you've heard people talk about it. If you're in any type of social media, you've caught everything you might want to know. It seems like every group, organization, and everyone who dreams of social media success is asking...
So... is Facebook good for your business?
Probably not.
Not the answer you expected huh? You thought that as a PHP developer active in the space, a connector who's happily introducing friends and colleagues, and someone who's neck deep in social media would say the exact opposite.... well, not quite.
There are many scenarios and business for which a Facebook Application just doesn't make sense. For example, if you run a neighborhood bar with a group of local regulars, having a one doesn't make much sense. If you run a basic news site or blog, syndicating your content to Facebook doesn't require your own app. Don't waste your time.
A Facebook App tends to make the most sense to do something completely meaningless but interesting (eg. Friends Density), something silly (eg. Movie), or something that engages your community and keeps them coming back (eg. New York Times Quiz). While only the third is obviously associated with a commercial entity, each one has the ability to use the available Facebook data to do something interesting...
So am I a hypocrite with WhyGoSolo?
Well, maybe... but I hope not. ;)
WhyGoSolo itself is all about connecting with other people. Odds are that most are going to be friends, associates, and colleagues that you're already familiar with and want to spend a bit of time with. It could be business networking over coffee, sharing some free tickets that you won, or even having a familiar face to go to that networking event with. It doesn't matter.
So a Facebook App makes perfect sense for us. We want people to let their friends know what they're up to - or what they'd like to be up to - and then go do it. If you see our App or how it announces things in the newsfeed, you'll see that's our goal. Let your friends know what you're up to... and then get out of your/their way.
If you're still interested in getting a Facebook Application online, I suggest you talk to Zvi Band. He worked with us to flesh out the spec and then built the first version of the WhyGoSolo App. Hopefully he'll handle the future versions as our vision grows.
Not all social networks are equal
The demographics of facebook need to match up with what you are doing for it to have value. It has traditionally been offered to the student population and continues to have the most traction there. In contrast, Linked-In tends to reach people more seasoned in their professions. It would be interesting for someone to research the demographics of each. I could see this becoming a useful (and potentially) profitable market research guide.
LinkedIn vs Facebook
I treat LinkedIn more like an auto-updating Rolodex. I went through my CRM system a couple months ago and found it was horribly out of date. The only way I knew how to get in touch with many of the people was via their LinkedIn profiles.
And there's all kinds of competitive research you can do too... ;)
Thanks for the
Thanks for the shoutout...
First, to narrow it down - you are talking about the utility of developing a Facebook application, not using facebook, creating a group, poking each other, etc....
I agree Facebook applications have varying utility, and it depends entirely on what your social media strategy is. While a bar might not need a Facebook application, it may want to have some other type of Facebook presence.
In your case, a Facebook application makes perfect sense. You're allowing your users to bring their data into other realms, and share it with their friends.
Bringing outside UGC into Facebook and tying together different social networks is something I really am interested in. Very web 2.1.
Keith, I think you might
Keith, I think you might have gotten this backwards. The "silly" Facebook applications like super-pirate-ninja-poke-graph are what drive the increasing levels of spam and profile clutter.
On the other hand, useful applications (like WhyGoSolo) that tap into the existing social-graph of Facebook is indeed the sweet spot of application development.
Good to see you working on Facebook apps though! I'm still with GigPark, and we've also just recently launched our own Facebook app ;)
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