Ignoring Privacy Was Indeed A Bad Idea For Facebook

December 10th, 2007

Facebook has changed its controversial Beacon advertising system following a spate of flare ups in complaints and dissatisfaction against commercialization of private choices by members.

At the very onset it seemed quite obvious that users wouldn’t be too happy if their choices were flaunted to the world. But Facebook still decided to go ahead with its marketing strategy which focused on promoting peer advertising through individual member choices. Trusted recommendations and referrals formed the basis of this marketing strategy.

The change has come in the form of an “opt in” system that asks the members for permission first. So Facebook users will now have more control on whether they want their choices to become public or remain private. In fact, Facebook has released a public apology letter on the website’s blog that also discusses how the new system assures more privacy.

From the advertisers’ point of view, this might be a move backward. But most importantly, if Facebook had gone ahead with its previous opt-out advertising strategy, it would have definitely seen a remarkable fall in the number of its members. It wouldn’t have been long before advertisers would have soon followed suit. An advertising system that borders on intrusiveness has a very limited shelf life and definitely sparks a lot of negative repercussions. So with this change in their policy and by giving users more flexibility as far as choices are concerned, Facebook certainly has made a smart move. It has definitely come as a relief for the millions of members who had begun to believe that Facebook had started to tread on their toes!

Tags: advertising, beacon, facebook, social media