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Beacon: When does a bait and switch hurt, and what is the cost?
The whole Facebook Beacon buzz has been sweeping online and offline news - and for what reason? Is it the next generation in advertising, the next generation and user tracking, or the latest and most powerful buzz mechanism regardless of it’s true value?
The next generation in advertising? In concept there’s potential here, since WOM (word of mouth) is a well known and proven marketing vehicle. On the other hand, Facebook’s version of WOM is unproven and therefore hypothetical.
The next generation in user tracking? Definitely - by lining up advertisers who send data to Facebook after all transactions, Facebook is apparently able to collect and store buying behavior from it’s ecommerce partners. Since users can choose to avoid broadcasting their purchase history on Facebook, Facebook wins in the data collection business, while the advertisers may not win if users decide not to broadcast their private purchasing data. Before the blow-up discussed below - this user tracking was a big deal and concern for many privacy and consumer groups.
The most powerful buzz mechanism? Could very well be. Facebook Beacon was discussed and described as an opt-in added value for users of the Beacon system. At the same time, advertisers would ride on a wave of user recommendations to glory in the delivery of highly targeted ads. Landmark advertisers signed-up, people spoke of “the next Google”, and Facebook was flying high with a $15B valuation. That series of events was impressive and well managed. Fast-foward to the present. Coke is “Holding Off” on the Facebook bandwagon as the “opt-out” Beacon they saw was not the “opt-in” version they were sold. The launch of Beacon required users to “opt-out” instead of opt-in, resulting in user purchase and privacy data being broadcast if users didn’t act fast enough. Bloggers revolted, and Facebook back peddled, (quickly, almost as if it was planned) implementing the original “opt-in” that people believed it was going to be.
The anger and buzz has subsided for Facebook, as they returned to delivering the “opt-in” originally promised. Some people are even lauding them as listening to the masses. What I find most fascinating is that the privacy fears and user tracking has suddenly become an invisible issue. In a simple act of overstepping its bounds, then returning to them, Facebook seized a tremendous PR opportunity and apparently pushed privacy fears aside.
I’d like some comments on this one. Were the original privacy fears unfounded? Did Facebook successfully redirect the privacy fears and turn them into good will by doing a bait-and-switch on the opt-in/opt-out dance? Did Facebook’s actions really alienate advertisers like Coke, or is this just the prelude to massive user-info sharing that will parallel the hype-fear-growth cycle that Facebook feeds saw? I’m curious on your feedback.
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The overblown backlash is a result of all the press on Facebook’s overblown calculated valuation in light of the Microsoft investment. Not having an opt-out to begin with was an error, but all will be forgotten I think in a month. Not to say that this conversation about Beacon and Facebook is not important, it is very important, but its function is as a ventilation to help us all allow for the changes in advertising that will lead to greater user-info sharing, and acceptance of the same. It is, I think, the inevitable.
Think it’s the next generation to drain advertiser’s pockets. Little overkill on trying to milk the user base. People don’t use Facebook to be marketed to and studied to death.