Quote from ksmetana:
Some older guys don't seem to grasp how big FB will be. They think its just another social networking site like MySpace. It's just some webpage for losers with low self esteems to connect?
No no no,
Kids and teenagers all use facebook. They all go home from school and hop on and flirt with each other. The MAJORITY of people under 21 use social media. Sure it might not appeal to 30-90 year olds, but you need to understand that this is the future of social interaction. You can connect with everyone you know at once. Television already keeps people indoors, changing the social dynamics of humanity. Why is it so hard to think technology can strike again and alter the way humans communicate. Just because you're old doesn't mean you're right.
My grandmother has a FB account for crying out loud, and all she has a computer for is to make bets on horses.
Point is, the youth love the damn site. It is a growth story. You'll be 6 feet under and the next generation will be on Facebook.
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As far as Zuckerberg goes, the guy got lucky. He is no visionary, no genius. Just lucky. They have turned him into some tech hero in the media, BS. He is just some college kid who made a lame website and got lucky. He made the site as a rating system or some BS, so you could rate your classmates on appearance. Give me a break. It evolved into what it is. People caught on, it became the grown up alternative to Myspace, which became filled with advertisements, spammers, and pedophiles.
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They can't charge for use. All they can do is possibly sell apps, and sell ad space. They can also help with marketing campaigns.
In the end, it is going to be a cash machine, with high growth.
Imagine when you can buy shit right through FB. You buy a CD through FB music, your friends see that, and like it, and they can buy it too. People's own purchasing decisions will act as advertisements. Commerce will become integrated with human interaction.
Problem is that if the site becomes riddled with ads like myspace, people will probably use it less, as it won't be as quick and convenient.
The key to FB's success is to keep it simple and integrate it into people's lifestyles. It needs to be an essential tool within the human life, like the telephone, like the microwave.
The youth are living a growing portion of their lives attached to electronics, glued to screens. FB has the chance to completely change the way humans interact for years to come.
Do they execute properly? Or do they give in to the demands of Wall Street. Make $$$$ NOW??
That is the question. Wall Street wants to see cash now. The more intelligent thing is to let FB naturally grow. FB can be a 30 billion company or it can be hundreds of billions.
Look at Google vs Yahoo. We all know why Google beat the shit out of the other search engines. It was simple and its quick loading ads were HELPFUL. Google grew its user base simply because of its layout. The money came later.
FB should do the same. Organic growth, and then you slowly integrate the ads and whatever other ideas they come up with to make money.
Google changed the world for years to come, FB can too as long as they don't fawk up.