It's A(OL) Facebook eWorld

By: Andrew Eklund

Posted on 04/22/2010 - 6:55am | From the Digital Marketing Blog

Well, it's finally happened. I have to write The Facebook Post. Waiting any longer will only continue to deny that Facebook has won and the Internet has lost. OK. That last statement is ridiculous, but suffice it to say that Facebook is a total and complete monster of a force in our culture and, increasingly, in our businesses.

Facebook is the new AOL. Whoa whoa whoa!! Hold on a second. Shut your collective pie-holes for just a second. There was a time when AOL was actually pretty cool. (OK. Now listen carefully. Do you hear that? Yup. That sound was just 10 million geeks all saying in unison, "AOL WAS NEVER COOOOOOL!") Back in 1992 or so, it was an ecosystem that was relatively easy to use, anyone who got on could find something entertaining, and "You've Got Mail!" was something you actually looked forward to hearing each time you logged in. Let's not forget that another little upstart company called Apple actually tried getting into the more commercial game when it replaced its AppleLink with an online community called eWorld. It was pretty cool too but died a quick death, arguably because AOL was killing it in terms of subscribers. (Just for giggles, let's also remind ourselves that Apple killed eWorld so it could focus on launching the Newton. Now THAT'S funny.)

Facebook is the new AOL, however, for the same reason AOL was AOL: it is a safe, understandable (albeit clunky), predictable, walled-garden that attempts to keep its inhabitants together comfortably. I would say it's doing a rather good job when you consider that it's gone from nowhere in 2007 to 500,000,000 users worldwide. This is where I continue to really make some enemies with the traditional Internet crowd: for a huge number of consumers, the Internet is just too damn difficult to use. Every site you go to has been designed by someone different, you have to learn how to navigate it, and, frankly, so much of the content is pure crap (and, yeah, I'm talkin' to you, Corporate America). At some point, a whole bunch of people -- I know, that's scientific -- throw up their hands and say, "Hell with it! I don't have time for that. If there's something good for me to see Out There, someone will link me to it."

So perhaps there's a better metaphor for Facebook. Facebook is the Internet's Green Zone. While there's a war raging outside, Facebook is that place where your friends are. It's nearly impossible to get accosted on Facebook. Why? Because Facebook is a universe almost entirely comprised of people you've selected to follow and engage with. The Internet is crazy town. Facebook is Mayberry. (Jeez, Andrew. Quit it with the roaming metaphors.) Just like real life, most people on this planet want to live in a Mayberry, where the kids can roam free, neighbors are on their front porches engaging in the talk of the day, and the police take care of the bad guys. Look, I get it too. Lots of people don't want any of this. It's too safe and pretty and, er, controlled. Designers hate Facebook because there's nothing to do with it. Developers hate it because you have to code everything the way Facebook wants it. And of course the Internet elite hate it because it's Facebook, just like they hated AOL and, before that, CompuServe.

As a marketer and communicator, it's my job to go where the people are, and while Facebook has a long way to go to be ubiquitous, it does represent 500,000,000 people worldwide with considerable purchasing power. From teens talking about Justin Beiber to moms (and dads) desperately asking each other "OMG! Who's this Justin Beiber!" Facebook is a serious force in this economy and in our culture. One last anecdote. In my life I walk into a lot of different businesses, and I can tell you who looooooooves Facebook: office receptionists. I've begun to take more serious notice, but I bet 8 out of 10 office receptionists right now are either messing around on Facebook or have it open in the background as they're  faking looking at that Word document.

And it gets weirder. Increasingly, I'm finding myself in a more common position when working with a client to recommend a Facebook environment rather than building a stand-alone website. And I'm talking about some pretty unsexy stuff too. Recently, we've been setting up client sales teams on private Facebook groups so they can exchange client information, best practices, and market conditions. Why build an external community that would include all the built-in features of Facebook when you have...Facebook?

So, haters, bring it. Hate your Facebook. But unlike AOL (and most likely the Green Zone too), Facebook isn't going away anytime soon. It's time to wrap your head around it, imagine how your business plays in it, and love it. Why? Because remember, most of you hated the Internet too.

Right now, Facebook is holding its developer conference called f8. For coverage, visit here.