{"id":229,"date":"2008-10-30T10:02:51","date_gmt":"2008-10-30T04:32:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/windchimesindia.wordpress.com\/?p=229"},"modified":"2009-08-01T13:17:33","modified_gmt":"2009-08-01T07:47:33","slug":"facebookads","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/windchimes.co.in\/blog\/2008\/10\/facebookads\/","title":{"rendered":"Is advertising on Facebook called Social Media Marketing?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Unless you have been living in the caves of Afghanistan<\/a>, it is likely that you would have heard, if not become a registered member, of Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mark Zuckerberg<\/a>, the 24 year old boss of Facebook opened up advertising on Facebook last year taking the approach of \u2018social actions\u2019<\/em> of its users. He explains it in his press release<\/a> that \u201cThe core of every user\u2019s experience on Facebook is their page and that\u2019s where (all) businesses are going to start as well. Social actions are powerful because they act as trusted referrals and reinforce the fact that people influence people. It\u2019s no longer just about messages that are broadcasted out by companies, but increasingly about information that is shared between friends. <\/em>Social Ads can appear either within a user\u2019s News Feed as sponsored content or in the ad space along the left side of the site.\u201d<\/p>\n

A lot of people believe that this might take web advertising to its new generation fourth<\/em> phase. Basically Internet advertising has three proven advertising categories. The first is the banner or display ads; I guess it\u2019s the most used by Indian marketers. The second is the online classifieds (eg. Craigslist<\/a>); I can\u2019t think of a successful Indian example in this case. Third is the widely spreading \u2018search advertising\u2019<\/a><\/em> that has been largely driven by Google.\n<\/p>\n

As a marketer myself, I find the search related ads as the safest bet where I might put my monies. I haven\u2019t found many banner ads<\/a> so compelling or memorable enough to click on them<\/a>. Search ads appear at right time<\/em> and also I have to pay for them only if the consumer responds by clicking on it.<\/p>\n

Although Facebook Ads is a step forward from earlier forms of advertising\u00a0it cannot be considered as\u00a0social media<\/a>. It is still advertising<\/em>. The message will still be more like brand speak rather than consumer speak. I give this example every time I have to explain the difference between speaking with<\/em> and speaking to<\/em>. Think of speaking to someone as standing on a podium with audience facing towards you while speaking with<\/em> as coming down from that podium and standing together with the people and discussing with them. Social media is all about dialoguing with people, participating in their conversations and generating value for the group<\/p>\n

We have reached a stage where Cluetrain Manisfesto<\/a> needs to be revisited as its implications are being felt more than ever. It is important to preserve the sanctity of conversation economy even more. As social media marketer<\/a> you have to ensure that you are creating value for your reader. Brian Solis<\/a> has added his own unique perspective in his post Conversational Marketing Vs Market Conversations<\/a><\/p>\n

I particularly like what Doc Searls<\/a> has written on his blog<\/a> about conversational marketing.<\/p>\n