Big Brands & Facebook: Demographics,
Case Studies & Best Practices Charlene Li Vice President & Principal Analyst Forrester Research October 8, 2007

Theme Facebook marketing requires communicating,
not advertising

Agenda <ul><li>What are the demographics
of Facebook users? </li></ul><ul><li>What are some best practices for brand marketing on Facebook? </li></ul>

Facebook’s demographics <ul><li>60 million active
users projected by end of 2007 </li></ul><ul><ul><li>Currently at 44 million active users </li></ul></ul><ul><ul><li>Half of current users return daily </li></ul></ul><ul><li>Facebook also projects that 75% of worldwide users will be outside of college </li></ul>Source: Facebook

A drill down of Facebook’s
US demographics <ul><li>56.3% female </li></ul><ul><li>58.4% have some college education </li></ul><ul><li>14% are non-white </li></ul><ul><li>34% work as professionals, executives, sales, education, or technical </li></ul><ul><ul><li>12% are full time students </li></ul></ul><ul><li>12% have children under 16 </li></ul>Source: Nielsen//NetRatings

Facebook’s international age distribution Source:
Facebook internal data, September 2007

Facebook users have “aged” over
the past year Source: Nielsen//NetRatings Note: These number differ significantly from Facebook’s internal data, which has 35+ as 6% of all users worldwide in September 2007 Percent of US Facebook users in each age group

Facebook demographics best practices <ul><li>Anticipate
that the demographics will change rapidly over the next 12-18 months </li></ul><ul><li>Adjust your marketing plans and plan for flexibility </li></ul><ul><li>Beware of relying on what worked yesterday, especially with fickle college students and newbie 35+ users </li></ul>

Agenda <ul><li>What are the demographics
of Facebook users? </li></ul><ul><li>What are some best practices for brand marketing on Facebook? </li></ul>

Microsoft handles IAB standard ad
sales

Targeting beyond demos

Facebook’s News Feed Ads insert
targeted messages 4-26% CTR for sponsored News Feed stories

Facebook Flyers give self-service control

Theme Facebook marketing requires communicating,
not advertising

Sponsored Groups <ul><li>Group page with
customized navigation, look & feel </li></ul><ul><li>Usually includes a significant media buy to drive traffic to the sponsored group page </li></ul><ul><ul><li>Display ads and flyers </li></ul></ul><ul><ul><li>Newsfeed targeting </li></ul></ul><ul><li>Costs usually in the six figures for a three month engagement </li></ul><ul><li>Note that any company can set up a group for free </li></ul>

Jeep treats social networks like
another channel

Misses a chance to create
a unique community

Victoria’s Secret also looks like
an ad…

But the community is highly
engaged

Crest White Strips case study
Targeted 20 colleges Offered free concerts and movie screenings Live chat facilitate interactions Measured sales impact at nearby stores

Ernst & Young engages in
a conversation to recruit college students

Sponsored Groups best practices <ul><li>Understand
how similar groups meet/don’t meet needs already </li></ul><ul><li>Create a unique experience that </li></ul><ul><li>Enable discussion board, The Wall, photos, etc. </li></ul><ul><li>Read and respond to comments </li></ul><ul><li>Be transparent about your role and perspective </li></ul>

Why applications on Facebook are
different

Because I know Dave, his
review has context

My colleague Peter Kim shares
travel

Application best practices <ul><li>Create useful
apps that model what friends do naturally – share info, experiences, and laughs </li></ul><ul><li>Plan out how to make your app viral </li></ul><ul><li>Get feedback from users once you launch </li></ul>

Recommendations <ul><li>Facebook marketing is about
communicating, not advertising – so act appropriately </li></ul><ul><li>Be a part of the Facebook experience </li></ul><ul><ul><li>More like content than advertising </li></ul></ul><ul><li>Tap into the reasons why friends share </li></ul><ul><li>Listen, learn, and be ready to make mistakes </li></ul>

Wal-Mart keeps trying – kudos
for effort

Thank you Charlene Li +1
650/581-3833 [email_address] www.forrester.com blogs.forrester.com/charleneli