Entries Tagged 'Facebook Commentary' ↓

Plaxo Has the Basics, But That is Where it Stops

Dennis Howlett ascertains that Plaxo’s basic features, such as the ability to see contacts birthdays and send them a e-card is enough to push the service above Facebook in terms of utility.

I think not.

While Howlett has not yet found the Facebook equivalent of the Plaxo feature mentioned below the rest of us need to look no further than the “birthdays” section of the Facebook home page and the ability to give virtual gifts to friends as a replacement for this same functionality. Sure it is not free, and requires an extra step is required, but the ability to give recognition on the Facebook platform is a standard feature - contrary to Howlett’s belief.

Oh, and there are over a half dozen Facebook applications that enhance the standard “birthday recognition” capabilities of Facebook. A quick search using the keyword birthday on Facebook delivered these to me. So before all of you enterprise folks downgrade to Plaxo from Facebook, use the most basic functionality of any site (search), to see if Facebook offers what you are looking for. With over 5,000 applications you’ll probably find it - both the “basics” and the “lip gloss”.

Sequoia Capital Looking to Get Out While Facebook Applications Are Still Hot

When I was growing up, I thought people who had lots of money were smart. After all, you can’t be stupid and have lots of money, right? Then I started learn about the world of venture capital in high school and eventually stumbled upon the greater fool theory. It was then I started to realize that just because you have money does not necessarily mean you are smart, it just means that you are probably less of a sucker than the next guy. For those who are unfamiliar with the term, the greater fool theory is the idea of buying something for no other reason than the belief that you will be able to sell it to some other sucker for a higher price. It is a common practice in the venture capital world (especially tech). If you don’t believe me, take a look around at all of the suckers buying over-valued, over-hyped companies everyday.

Who is the Greater Fool That Will Buy RockYou?

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via Mashable - Lookabee is an ‘in beta’ application for Facebook - that makes so much sense it is sure to be a hit. The basic idea behind the application is to provide a platform for teachers to keep in touch with their students by posting shared files, feedback on assignments, homework, extra help etc.

This will not only provide students and teachers an alternative and easy way to collaborate, but it will also solve the age old problem of letting parents know exactly what is going on in the classroom, areas they can help when needed and a facility to check up on progress.

These types of collaborative solutions have been implemented at many schools (are are standard in most private academic settings) but there has never really been a facility to bring this level of communication to the overall public school system. Facebook seems like a perfect platform for it - and with the announcement that Facebook is soon to allow contact grouping and privacy controls per group, the students will be more likely to use a tool like Lookabee, having not to worry about those ‘compromising’ party pictures being available to there homeroom teacher.

If you are a high school or university teacher in North American and want to participate in the beta program, you can sign up here.

Fortune Senior Editor - David Kirkpatrick - is reporting that Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Facebook was spotted in Seattle Tuesday, heading for meetings at Microsoft.

The web is abound with rumors that this 23yr. old reincarnation of Bill Gates is holding out for a $15 Billion dollar valuation on Facebook. Microsoft is rumored to be interested in doing a deal to buy a 5% piece for upwards of $500M. This is truly mind boggling.

Microsoft’s recent purchase of the aQuantive ad network for a staggering $6 Billion would tie in perfectly with Facebook’s search for increasing monetization strategies.

One thing is certain, Zuckerberg and the Facebook investors, can’t lose anything but momentum from being ’spotted’ in Seattle. - Google and the giant checkbook, are sure to be watching this carefully.

Marketing Yourself on Facebook is All About Networking

Neil Patel has a great post on branding yourself on Facebook. He offers up six tips for making the most of Facebook. What strikes me about his piece is that everything he recommends, from “Don’t Stay In Your Circle” to “Keep Your Profile UP-to-Date”, is how basic the advice is. While I am positive these basics of social networking are not “known” by the mainstream, it is a bit discouraging to think that a business person, all of whom know the power of face-to-face networking would need this most basic advice. It is no knock at Neil, it is just sad that experts need to relay the same basic advice to folks. You would think the “secrets to success” would at least be something more “advanced”. After all, success can’t be that easy?

With a platform that is as easy to use as fork and knife, what does it say about the social network known as the general public?

Consistent Facebook Status Updates Increase Your Visibility

I was fortunate enough to receive an iPhone as a gift last week and since then I have been very active in updating my Facebook status now that I have an easy way to update (my Samsung BlackJack was not very “Facebok friendly”). Over the last few days I have been constantly updating my Facebook status - every time I change venues, events, etc I change my status.

The results?

I have had an increase in interactions with my network of friends. I am going to continue doing this for a few more weeks and see if the trend continues, but this is an interesting development, one that has many marketing implications. If you are a frequent status “updater” have you had a similar experience?

How Much Longer Until It Catches Up To MySpace?

I just got done reading a wired piece on Facebook in which Fred Vogelstein quoted the growth of the Facebook platform at 1 million users per week. With their current user base of 36 million and growth rate of 1 million users per week it would take more than a year and half to match MySpace’s 2006 user base, and probably another six months to surpass MySpace as the number one social network. Given the period of time and the current growth rate, when do you think Facebook will catch MySpace? Will Facebook’s growth rate increase substantially in order to achieve this sooner, or like some believe, will they never catch MySpace? Let’s hear it!