I just read WIRED's article titled Facebook Ads Make You the Star -- And You May Not Know It. I had started to see Social Ads in use but the uproar over Beacon and related privacy concerns seems to have overshadowed the discussion.
WIRED's Megan McCarthy writes:
According to Facebook, a user has to take a "social action" in order to trigger the appearance of their name and picture in an advertisement. According to Facebook spokesperson Brandee Barker, that could be almost any activity that the user does on Facebook, "such as the download of an application and the acceptance of a friend request." It could also include becoming a "fan" of a business by clicking a link on that company's Facebook page.
We all knew that advertising would make the cash register ring at Facebook. As Colin Mackay said recently at The Canadian Institute Conference on Social Media (where we both presented) "Did you really think that the folks at Facebook were just being nice when they created a free platform that lets you see and message all your friends and family?" That being said, I suspect not many (even industry pundits) could have envisioned the controversy surrounding the ad model Facebook developed. From what I understand through the article, there is no way to opt-out of the Social Ad model for users at this time.
While I am a huge fan of social networks and Facebook in particular, I fear that new advertising tactics may push the limits of what is deemed acceptable and dampen the spirit that brought people there to begin with. And, ultimately turn people off of advertising even more than they already are.
As an individual, my advice to Facebook is to dedicate more time and effort to communicate in plain language (without the legal jargon) how their advertising platforms will involve users and what options are available. And, as a marketer, I wonder if there is a real lift in response from employing Social Ads versus the old standard banner ads? Is it really worth the furor and the potential loss of users?
Technorati Tags: Facebook Privacy Advertising Digital Marketing Social Ads Social Advertising Beacon
Amen, brother. I agree that we need to see a transition from the standard 5000 word unreadable EULA to something more concise and more relevant for the user/customer.
As individuals, we will need to get used to negotiating individual transactions about our information, our preferences and our personal endorsements. As it stands, companies think that the CYA agreement allows them to use your information and transaction history in any way they see fit.
It is kind of in the face of the concept of the power of consumer recommendations as they are attaching a face to a brand in hopes that it will trick consumers into thinking it is an endorsement from a friend, you think more time would be spent in building ways for Facebook users to share experiences, it may not be as often but it would be genuine.
It also introduces a slippery slope for Facebook and the advertisers, I can only image how profile pics will change to make fun of the ads they will be in.
Colin, Simon,
Thanks for the comments. The privacy has to be treated as customer service feature, not a "cover our ass six ways to Sunday" statement.
And I love the idea of pictures of people holding signs that read " I do not endorse this product!"
Facebook has since killed the beacon... and has replaced it with social stories that are less intrusive and permission driven
The social ads are performing well overall - and amazingly well when compared to their flyer / old ad system.
Where they go next will be interesting to observe!
Facebook does say right in its user agreement when you sign up -- yes it's in legalese -- that they have complete rights to whatever you post on facebook while it's there. The main reason I didn't join earlier than I did. As long as they stay responsive to users I'll live with it.
I would like to know where the spokesperson for Facebook is in all of this. Is it not Facebook's responsibility to respond to consumer concerns? And what's more, being a social media tool itself, shouldn't the company monitor relevant blogs and provide some sort of response? From a PR perspective, this issue will only escalate and Facebook needs to mitigate the situation as soon as possible.