In the Race for Traffic, Facebook Wins

For some time now marketing analysts have waited on the sidelines to
see who would win the war between Facebook and Twitter. Both are
wildly popular within the youth demographic. Both enable the type of
"friending" and "following" that makes PR gurus salivate. Twitter was
an early favorite of the general public, allowing its users to keep in
touch with friends without having to send long emails or make a phone
call. However, Facebook allowed the same instant communication as
Twitter with the ability to post pics, blog, and play games. Is it any
wonder that Facebook quickly surpassed Twitter as a fan
favorite?Facebook has been an Internet steamroller. Alex traffic
rankings show Facebook as the second most popular site in the entire
world, and according to statistics seen on news sites like TechNews
and Money, Facebook even surpassed Google in traffic during 2010.For
those looking to utilize Facebook and Twitter in their marketing
campaigns, it is best to understand the nature and citizenry of both
sites. As many businesses have found out the hard way, Facebook does
not inspire the same pay-per-click mentality of other websites. Yes,
PPCs can and have been used successfully on Facebook, but its users
are less likely to use Facebook for purchases. Advertising using these
two media sources requires a careful, community-building
approach.Facebook and all these other social networking sights have
turned into the race for traffic wins. The secret of Facebook
marketing is to apply what Malcolm Gladwell calls 'The Law of the
Few'. There are three types of people who have disproportionate impact
on others - connectors (know lots of people), mavens (find new
information) and salesmen (persuaders). These are the people that you
want as fans for your pages and members of your groups. How do you
make this happen - by offering something of value to them?Using
Facebook as an advertising tool means using it as it was meant to be
used-to build a social network. Sites like Facebook work the best for
small businesses like coffee shops that can post weekly specials, have
"regular" customers weigh in on bands or coffees of the day, or
nonprofits that can speak in direct communications about social
issues.