1.
Reasons
Yo u S h o u l d S t o p I n v e s t i n g in Facebook
by
Niki Weber
Email Website Linkedin Date
niki.e.weber@gmail.com metavintage.com linkedin.com/in/nikiweber May 8, 2012

2.
Before we begin, here’s a note about
Identifying sources
The icons shown below can be found throughout the presentation.
Each are hyper-linked. All you have to do is click on the icon to drive
to additional information (e.g. deeper explanations, research findings,
clarifications, references, sources, etc.).
IDEA
Click for insights, further clarification, explanations
DATA
Click for statistics, research, resources
SHARE
Click fo credits, inspirations, sparks
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing in Facebook 2

3.
Back in the day
Should I be on Facebook?
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 3

4.
Today
Social = Facebook
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing in Facebook 4

5.
What’s needed
A Social Reset Go Back.
We f*cked up
everything.
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing in Facebook 5

6.
How I really
Feel about Facebook
PERSONALLY PROFESSIONALLY
“Social networking...which seemed to It doesn’t matter what I think personally.
promise my brain the vitamin of human It only matters what my target audiences’
interaction, but actually traded my info think, feel, do, and see. If my audience is
to the corporate world and left me with on Facebook, I need to be there. If they
little more than a blackhole that sucked aren’t, I need to go where they are.
away what little attention span the
internet had already left me with...”*
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 6

7.
Who am I?
My 8-mile speech
I’m by no means a digital prophet.
My creativity is a combination of left and right brain.
Most recently I was the Digital Planning Director/Creative Innovations Director at TBWAChiatDay.
I don’t have a Facebook page for 7 compelling reasons.
For Facebook testing and observation I use an alias named, ‘Lola.’
I only blog or tweet to discuss my personal, non-work passions.
At work, my passion is my client. Their brand. Not mine.
I’m direct. I don’t shy away from a debate.
Please refrain from bashing BrainSport’s website—there is a reason for everything.
I don’t hate Facebook and I’m not really anti-social.
I often speak in hyperbole for added dramatic effect.
I am strongly opposed to marketing bullshit.
This is not a hater speech.
I have nothing to gain from giving this talk.
I have no doubt Facebook could give a shit about this talk.
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 7

8.
What Facebook probably
Thinks of my talk
PRICKED EGO
BUT WILL
PRETEND NOT
TO GIVE A SH!T
Here
DOES NOT
GIVE A SH!T
WILL NOT WILL
ACKNOWLEDGE RETAILIATE
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 8

9.
Let’s also
Get this out of the way
Occasionally, Facebook isn’t a terrible idea. However, even if you’re in Facebook’s sweet spot, it still
means you need a Social Reset. Facebook is only a part of what social entails. From my experience and
from audience insights, I believe Facebook isn’t a terrible idea when:
YOU’RE TARGETING YOUR BRAND CAN YOUR BRAND ORGANICALLY
THESE AUDIENCES: BE CLASSIFIED AS: MANIFESTS AS:
• Moms (all phases) • Retail/CPG • Customer service
• Students (of all levels) • Complex, new product • Events
• New parents • Mature produce • Content creators
• Narcissists • Cause/non-profit • Pictures
• The lonely, voyeurs, or stalkers • Commodity (looking to differentiate) • Exciting polls!
• Casual gamers • Social gaming • Rewards and incentives
• Existing passionate communities • Babies! • Famous and followed
• Persons going through a breakup • Pet-based (sponsored-celebs)
or some other painful life event • Celebrity-ladened • Exclusive and insider
• Deal-seekers (artist, team, player, etc.)
• Birthday celebrators • Rapidly changing inventory
• Wedding-minded
• Critics, conversationalists,
or “in-the-knowers”
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 9

10.
Why now?
Last July I was pissed...
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 10

11.
Why now?
It’s a time where...
THERE’S AN ALARMING LACK “THOUGHTS” ARE REDUCED
OF OPINIONS AND CREATIVITY TO SOUND BYTES
PEW AND MASHABLE OUR INSTINCTIVE ATTRACTION TO
SEEM UNDER THE SPELL GOSSIP HAS MADE FACEBOOK THE
OF FACEBOOK US MAGAZINE FOR NON-CELEBS
I MISS BRANDS DOING THINGS FACEBOOK’S “CONNECTIONS”
THAT WERE MEANINGFUL ENABLE GROUP THINK
THAT MADE ME WANT TO BE TO A DEGREE THAT
LOYAL TO THEM MAKES ME NERVOUS
AN INCREDIBLE AMOUT I MISS A TIME WHERE APPLE
OF BAD DATA AND AND REDBULL AREN’T THE ONLY
MISINFORMATION TWO BRANDS DOING THINGS
IS BEING SYNDICATED RIGHT MARKETING-WISE
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 11

12.
5 Reasons you should
Stop investing in Facebook
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 12

13.
5 Reasons you should
Stop investing in Facebook
1 WE’RE EXPERIENCING A SOCIAL-CARGO-CULT AND IT’S DISTORTING THE LANDSCAPE
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 13

14.
What is a
Social Cargo Cult?
The real-life ethnological phenomenon that happens when a technologically
primitive society comes in contact with a technologically more advanced
society. (Think of digital immigrants entering the world of digital natives.) It’s a
term used to describe anyone else who imitates superficial features of a system
(in this case, military logistics) and hopes to replicate the original’s success,
without any thought or understanding of the intrinsic workings of the system.
Reason #1
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 14

15.
Evidence of a
Social Cargo Cult
Inexperienced social media ‘gurus’ and Facebook’s massive marketing
tidal wave left behind a modern day cargo cult of social vocabulary.
Today, nearly every marketer can speak social, but most do not know
what the hell they actually mean.
Reason #1
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 15

16.
How does a social cargo cult impact the
Social Media Landscape?
a. c. e.
Repetitious Theoretical Bully
jargon social experts tactics
d.
b. Safe bets SOCIAL
Misinformation SLUDGE
deluge
Reason #1
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing in Facebook 16

17.
What
Social Sludge
looks like
Reason #1 The Internet
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 17

18.
A word about
Those safe from the storm
“TRUTH IS, NOT EVERYONE CAN BE COOL [SOCIALLY]
AND FOR THOSE WHO ARE NOT, YOU HAVE FACEBOOK.
- Anonymously Obvious
Reason #1
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 18

19.
5 Reasons you should
Stop investing in Facebook
1 WE’RE EXPERIENCING A SOCIAL-CARGO-CULT AND IT’S DISTORTING THE LANDSCAPE
2 YOU DON’T OWN IT, IT’S NOT YOURS, AND IT WILL NEVER PUT YOU FIRST, EVER
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 19

20.
You don’t own it. It’s not yours.
Your brand. Their server. Their data.
Without even a fight, most brands gave
Up power, control and ownership.
Reason #2
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 20

21.
5 Reasons you should
Stop investing in Facebook
1 WE’RE EXPERIENCING A SOCIAL-CARGO-CULT AND IT’S DISTORTING THE LANDSCAPE
2 YOU DON’T OWN IT, IT’S NOT YOURS, AND IT WILL NEVER PUT YOU FIRST, EVER
3 EXPECTATION HAS FAILED TO LIVE UP TO THE REALITY
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 21

22.
Expectations To Live Up
Have Failed To Reality
Reason #3
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 22

23.
Expectation Reality
Free & Easy Expensive & Hard work
Reason #3
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 23

24.
Expectation Reality
Why Not ? Oh Sh!t
Reason #3
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 24

25.
Expectation Reality
Authentic Community Forced Relationship
Reason #3
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 25

26.
Expectation Reality
We Have Social We Have A Process
Figured Out On Paper
Reason #3
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 26

27.
Expectation Reality
Facebook Fans Facebook…the F*ck If I Know
Reason #3
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 27

28.
Expectation Reality
Honest, Transparent Opportunistically Honest,
& Authentic* Transparent & Authentic
Reason #3
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook *The Bullshit Trinity of Social 28

29.
5 Reasons you should
Stop investing in Facebook
1 WE’RE EXPERIENCING A SOCIAL-CARGO-CULT AND IT’S DISTORTING THE LANDSCAPE
2 YOU DON’T OWN IT, IT’S NOT YOURS, AND IT WILL NEVER PUT YOU FIRST, EVER
3 EXPECTATION HAS FAILED TO LIVE UP TO THE REALITY
4 LEGALLY AND / OR STRUCTURALLY YOU’RE PROBABLY F*CKED
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 29

30.
Legally and / or structurally
You’re probably f*cked.
FULLY STAFFED
PROGRAMMATIC
STRUCTURE
UNDERSTAFFED
HIGH LEGAL’S POWER LOW
OVER SOCIAL
Reason #4
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 30

31.
5 Reasons you should
Stop investing in Facebook
1 WE’RE EXPERIENCING A SOCIAL-CARGO-CULT AND IT’S DISTORTING THE LANDSCAPE
2 YOU DON’T OWN IT, IT’S NOT YOURS, AND IT WILL NEVER PUT YOU FIRST, EVER
3 EXPECTATION HAS FAILED TO LIVE UP TO THE REALITY
4 LEGALLY AND / OR STRUCTURALLY YOU’RE PROBABLY F*CKED
5 FACEBOOK LOST ITS MIND ON THE PATH TO IPO
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 31

32.
On the path to Ipo
Facebook Lost Its Mind
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 32

33.
Facebook koobecaF
Be open Decline to
comment
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 33

34.
Facebook koobecaF
Apps on
Our mission is to Facebook may not
give people the integrate, link to,
power to share & promote, distribute,
make the world more or redirect to any
open & connected app on any other
competing social
platform
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 34

35.
Facebook koobecaF
425mm 425mm
monthly monthly
active mobile actively missed
users opportunities
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 35

36.
Facebook koobecaF
Frictionless Without
sharing expressed
consent
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 36

37.
Facebook koobecaF
F-Commerce F-Commerce
is the future is a huge fail
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 37

38.
Facebook koobecaF
Premium 60% of people
ads drive do not want to
brand impact engage with brands
via social media
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 38

39.
Facebook koobecaF
Facebook partners Facebook profile
with Spotify is required to
have a Spotify
account
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 39

40.
Facebook koobecaF
Developer Voted
friendly worst API
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 40

41.
Facebook koobecaF
Facebook Brand sites will
will replace continue to live
brand sites on our servers
Stephen Haines, commercial
director of Facebook’s U.K.
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 41

42.
Facebook koobecaF
Facebook Facebook is strongly
is #1 in referral encouraging longer
traffic engagement within
Facebook
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 42

43.
Facebook koobecaF
Brands get 46% more Brand pages are
engagement with seeing a drop in
Facebook Timeline engagement,
brand pages regardless of whether
they’ve switched
to Timeline
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 43

44.
Facebook koobecaF
“I know that “In most cases
people don’t want younger people
privacy...especially think very much
younger people” the same as older
people when it
comes to online ”
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 44

45.
Facebook koobecaF
“Many lightweight An exhaustive
interactions over time” amount of
insignificant and
often deal-ladened
interactions over
time with no
measurable ROI
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 45

46.
Facebook koobecaF
Social at scale We missed our
will not be free profit goals by
$500 million,
pay up brands
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 46

47.
Facebook koobecaF
Premiums allow “We’re sort .
brands to share of like 1951 .
content on the best television”
places on Facebook Mark D’Arcy, a former Time Warner
ad exec who’s now Facebook’s
director of global creative
As stated on Facebook’s fMC site solutions, said of Facebook ads
Reason #5
5 Reasons you should stop investing in Facebook 47

48.
5 Implications for
Moving forward
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 48

49.
5 Implications for
Moving forward
1 ACCEPT REALITY & FORCE CLARITY
(even if it’s an uncomfortable process)
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 49

50.
5 Implications for moving forward
Accept reality & force clarity
Solution #1
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 50

51.
5 Implications for moving forward
Part of accepting reality
If you want to realistically deliver a memorable experience, you can have
two but not all three principles in effect—a take on Keeley’s Triangle.
FAST
(even if it’s an uncomfortable process)
FREE ENGAGING
(e.g. intern vs. professional blogger, (meaningful, relevant,
community manager, outreach structures, irresistibly shareable)
systems, and measurement)
Solution #1
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 51

52.
5 Implications for moving forward
Part of accepting reality
If you want to realistically deliver a memorable experience, you can have
two but not all three principles in effect—a take on Keeley’s Triangle.
FAST
(even if it’s an uncomfortable process)
...but it’s going to cost you
(e.g. systemic team, quality
creative, risk tolerance, etc.)
FREE ENGAGING
(e.g. intern vs. professional blogger, (meaningful, relevant,
community manager, outreach structures, irresistibly shareable)
systems, and measurement)
Solution #1
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 52

53.
5 Implications for moving forward
Part of accepting reality
If you want to realistically deliver a memorable experience, you can have
two but not all three principles in effect—a take on Keeley’s Triangle.
FAST
(even if it’s an uncomfortable process)
...but it’s going to cost you
(e.g. systemic team, quality
creative, risk tolerance, etc.)
FREE ENGAGING
(e.g. intern vs. professional blogger, (meaningful, relevant,
community manager, outreach structures, irresistibly shareable)
systems, and measurement)
Solution #1 ...but it won’t be fast.
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook (e.g. will be programmatic, will require a dedicated team, etc.) 53

54.
5 Implications for moving forward
Part of accepting reality
If you want to realistically deliver a memorable experience, you can have
two but not all three principles in effect—a take on Keeley’s Triangle.
FAST
(even if it’s an uncomfortable process)
...but it will not be good or ...but it’s going to cost you
it will have a short shelf life (e.g. systemic team, quality
and be hard to replicate creative, risk tolerance, etc.)
(e.g. polls, pushed content,
sweepstakes, contests,
posts, etc. –not reactive or
proactive, just pushing)
FREE ENGAGING
(e.g. intern vs. professional blogger, (meaningful, relevant,
community manager, outreach structures, irresistibly shareable)
systems, and measurement)
Solution #1 ...but it won’t be fast.
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook (e.g. will be programmatic, will require a dedicated team, etc.) 54

55.
5 Implications for
Moving forward
1 ACCEPT REALITY & FORCE CLARITY
(even if it’s an uncomfortable process)
2 ROLL-UP YOUR SLEEVES
(take action–test, learn, optimize and repeat)
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 55

56.
5 Implications for moving forward
Roll up your sleeves
Solution #2
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 56

57.
5 Implications for
Moving forward
1 ACCEPT REALITY & FORCE CLARITY
(even if it’s an uncomfortable process)
2 ROLL-UP YOUR SLEEVES
(take action–test, learn, optimize and repeat)
3 PUT FACEBOOK BACK IN THEIR PLACE
(and treat them like the media vendor they’ve become)
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 57

58.
5 Implications for moving forward
Put Facebook back in their place
Solution #3
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 58

59.
5 Implications for
Moving forward
1 ACCEPT REALITY & FORCE CLARITY
(even if it’s an uncomfortable process)
2 ROLL-UP YOUR SLEEVES
(take action–test, learn, optimize and repeat)
3 PUT FACEBOOK BACK IN THEIR PLACE
(and treat them like the media vendor they’ve become)
4 OBTAIN TRUSTED SOCIAL EXPERT
(they build more than blog)
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 59

60.
5 Implications for moving forward
Obtain trusted social expert
Solution #4
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 60

61.
5 Implications for
Moving forward
1 ACCEPT REALITY & FORCE CLARITY
(even if it’s an uncomfortable process)
2 ROLL-UP YOUR SLEEVES
(take action–test, learn, optimize and repeat)
3 PUT FACEBOOK BACK IN THEIR PLACE
(and treat them like the media vendor they’ve become)
4 OBTAIN TRUSTED SOCIAL EXPERT
(they build more than blog)
5 SEEK COUNSEL FROM THE SOCIAL CLAIRVOYANT
(as qualified & accurate as 99.2% of social media experts*)
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook *It’s an educated guess 61

62.
Solution #5
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing in Facebook
1n Facebook MetaVintage.com/Fortune 62

63.
5 Implications for
Moving forward
1 ACCEPT REALITY & FORCE CLARITY
(even if it’s an uncomfortable process)
2 ROLL-UP YOUR SLEEVES
(take action–test, learn, optimize and repeat)
3 PUT FACEBOOK BACK IN THEIR PLACE
(and treat them like the media vendor they’ve become)
So, now what?
4 OBTAIN TRUSTED SOCIAL EXPERT
(they build more than blog)
5 SEEK COUNSEL FROM THE SOCIAL CLAIRVOYANT
(as qualified & accurate as 99.2% of social media experts*)
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook *It’s an educated guess 63

64.
Consult an expert on mixing ‘Friends & Money’
“If you need a friend, get a dog.”
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 64

65.
If you forget everything else
Remember to ask.. .
“WHY AM I ON FACEBOOK?”
5 Reasons You Should Stop Investing 1n Facebook 65

66.
Shout - out’s &
Thank you’s
It takes a village to do digital correctly, and this presentation
is no different. A very special thanks to my digital friends who
helped me along the way.
J.P. Guiseppi Nick Drake
Tim Shea Kari McGlynn
Adam Wiese Gage Clegg
Ryan Potter All My BrainSport Peeps
Eugene Buono Jon, Roberto & the Rest
of the Guys at Covelop
To request the full-length presentation, please send me an e-mail.
By Email Website Linkedin
Niki Weber niki.e.weber@gmail.com metavintage.com linkedin.com/in/nikiweber

67.
Appendix CAVEAT: Keeping up with the trials and tribulations of Facebook is a
full-time job. I’ve included the most up-to-date research in an attempt
to stall the obsolesce of this presentation.
Eventually my blog (metavintage.com) will act as the real-time version
of the document. It will dive into certain slides deeper, add new research
and Facebook developments, provide voice-over commentary, etc.
Additionally, I tried to feature research sources with the least bias, but
most consistency (e.g. eMarketer). Additionally, it’s incredibly hard to
separate fact from fiction. I’ve tried to shed light on the side of the
argument that rarely is seen. I would be more than happy to add
opposing views to the deck as it grows, so please feel free to send.

68.
OPENING: A LITTLE BACKGROUND
BEFORE WE BEGIN

69.
Appendix
A HEADS UP ON WHAT I MEANT BY “INVESTMENT”?
I’m referring to the blood, sweat, tears, and dollars spent on keeping a Facebook brand page alive. Apologies if you came here
thinking that by “investment” I was referring to the IPO kind. I wish I was clairvoyant last July when I submitted this topic, but
unfortunately it was pure serendipity. Although, it would have been incredibly badass to have predicted it seven months ago.
One critical caveat: The aim of this presentation always was to get marketers to look at Facebook a little more critically and a little
less like a groupie. I want to encourage discussion. My opinions are by no means perfect, but it’s a conduit to broaching a subject
that shockingly hasn’t been addressed. Please comment away and hit me up on LinkedIn or through email. I’d love to optimize
this presentation so it eventually becomes a smart, useful tool.
Appendix
BACK

70.
Appendix
WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY BACK IN THE DAY?
I’m referencing 2008, 2009, and the early part of 2010. During this time brands we’re still tight with MySpace and only
starting to consider Facebook presences. To be fair, social was so new that most brands didn’t have time or the future
insight to address the question: What’s my brands role in social? Why am I on MySpace or Facebook? How will being
social benefit my business? Brands’ social strategy (if there even was one) was more of a follow the leader vs. the right
thing to build my brand.
As you can see below, In 2008 and 2009 MySpace spending was still exceeding Facebook spending. At this point in time,
brands were not in a state of social hysteria and actually contemplated participating on Facebook (and social in general.)
By no means was Facebook a no-brainer nor did the idea of Facebook equate to social. However, in 2010, Facebook
exponentially pulled away with the lead.
Appendix
NEXT

71.
Appendix
BACK IN THE DAY THERE WERE TANGIBLE METRICS:
At the close of 2009 there was no mention of “engagement,” “social at the core,” or “advocacy” as a social media marketing
objective. Instead, three separate and independent studies showed marketers using hard, tangible metrics to define objectives like
increased website traffic or lead generation. In looking back, we were closer to finding the true ROI of social media in 2009 than we
are today.
Appendix
BACK

72.
Appendix
A DRAMATIC SURGE IN FACEBOOK LOVE OCCURRED
IN 2010 AND CONTINUES TO GROW.
A dramatic surge in Facebook love occurred in 2010. Through a brilliant CMO and agency exec targeted campaign, massive
audience numbers, and a sexy start-up sheen, Facebook has become synonymous with social. Having a presence on the
platform has become a literal no-brainer. Without a doubt, brands are in love with Facebook and believe it to be their primary
social media outlet.
85% of companies viewed Facebook as successful, a
Appendix
significant jump from 54% in 2009. Yet Facebook hadn't
matched message or bulletin boards, with 93% reporting it
was a successful tactic. foursquare also saw a significant
increase in usefulness; it wasn't even measured in 2009, yet in
2010, 75% of companies reported it was a successful tactic.
NEXT
There was a 10% increase in Facebook utilization
by Fortune 500 companies in 2010. Facebook usage continued to increase from 2011 - 2012.

73.
Appendix
BY 2011& 2012, SOCIAL MEDIA GREATLY IMPACTS
BRANDS, THEIR BUSINESS, AND THEIR BUDGETS.
Facebook and social media in general are impacting marketers more than any previous vendor or medium, because it goes
beyond the walls of marketing.
The perception of social media begins to change in 2010
with more companies viewing it as important. 86% reported
social media technologies to be somewhat or very important
to their business and marketing strategies in 2010, up from
79% in 2009. And growth was even stronger among those
The rise of social media is the leading factor impacting who consider it “very important.”
Appendix
the marketing world at 70%. Surprisingly, critical
business factors like competition, ROI, and disruptive
technologies don’t come close to the impact social
media has had on their organizations.
NEXT

74.
Appendix
BY 2011& 2012, SOCIAL MEDIA GREATLY IMPACTS
BRANDS, THEIR BUSINESS, AND THEIR BUDGETS.
Multiple, separate and independent studies show budget allocation for Facebook and social media in general is on the
http://gim.ie/xz9o
rise, even though the medium has failed to produce convincing ROI.
Appendix
NEXT

75.
Appendix
BY 2011& 2012, SOCIAL MEDIA GREATLY IMPACTS
BRANDS, THEIR BUSINESS, AND THEIR BUDGETS.
Multiple separate and independent studies show budget allocation for Facebook and social media in general is on the
rise even though the medium has failed to produce convincing ROI.
Appendix
http://gim.ie/ywZn
http://gim.ie/ywW2
NEXT

76.
Appendix
BY 2011& 2012, SOCIAL MEDIA GREATLY IMPACTS
BRANDS, THEIR BUSINESS, AND THEIR BUDGETS.
Multiple separate and independent studies show budget allocation for Facebook and social media in general is on the
rise even though the medium has failed to produce convincing ROI.
Appendix
http://gim.ie/ywVG NEXT

77.
Appendix
FACEBOOK STARTS TO UP THE ANTE.
In the last half of 2011, most Fortune 500 brands felt a full-court offense from Facebook’s sales teams.
I’ve pasted below a few slides that I always chuckled at...
Are these not the least engaging ad units opportunities What a weird primary stat to share and compare...I This triangle is probably the least creative, primarily un-
you’ve ever seen? Events? polls? Comments? Likes? never cared how long a user stayed on a customizable, un-sexy, and uninteresting tool kit for
And search-like banners? These options may homepage, it was the action they took or the brands.
Appendix
occasionally convert and deliver on some people’s content that engaged them that was important. The
definition of engaging, but in my opinion they are the data is too vague to be insightful.
least engaging units, which a majority of brands don’t
need to generate revenue.
NEXT

78.
Appendix
FACEBOOK FILES FOR IPO.
On February 2, 2012, Facebook filed for IPO. Finally the public received greater transparency into Facebook’s inter-
workings. Two things were clear: (1) Facebook was $500 million under their profit projections. (2) In possibly an unfair
comparison, Facebook is way behind where Google was at this same stage given their inability to define a clear and
valuable monetization platform.
Implication for brands: The sales pressure we’ve started to adjust to is going to continue to grow and possibly get worse.
Appendix
NEXT

79.
Appendix
FACEBOOK HOLDS THEIR FIRST fMC.
On February 29, 2012 Facebook held its first conference in New York for
marketers (and some of their media and agency partners) called fMC. It
was a myopic but thoroughly detailed attempt to educate marketers on
social and new changes to their platform. They created guides, org charts,
and rule books for marketers. They presented self-funded Forrester
studies. Most of their suggestions required a brand to be a heavy but
nimble content producer.
The most alarming aspect to me was what Facebook didn’t say. The
changes they cited as being necessary to success lay at the feet of brands
and marketers, but very little changed within Facebook that actually helps
brands. It was like a friend who talks about themselves the whole time and
never asks how you’re doing.
To be fair, some content was good, some bad. All was in an effort to
increase Facebook revenue generation. None focused on improving the
experience for Facebook users.
Appendix
Facebook created a microsite to host the conference’s various materials here:
http://www.facebook.com/business/fmc
NEXT

80.
Appendix
FACEBOOK HOLDS THEIR FIRST fMC.
At fMC, Facebook announced a variety of improvements and changes. Primarily the changes centered around new
offerings for marketers in the areas of analytics, ads, and timeline. Below (and on the next few slides) I’ve recapped a
few of the changes I found most interesting.
New Facebook Ad Offerings:
Reach Generator:
Rather than pay on a per-click or per-thousand impressions basis, Reach Generator lets advertisers pay a fixed fee based on
their Page’s fan count. In return, Facebook guarantees exposure of a Page’s posts to 75 percent of their fans a month, and
roughly 50 percent a week, by showing them as ads in the ads sidebar, news feed, and logout page. Typically a Page post only
reaches 16 percent of a Page’s fans, so this creates a simple way to pay for added distribution.
It will be interesting to see how fans respond to this more pervasive advertising. Will Unlikes increase? Will fans engage? Only
time will tell. Also, it was shocking to me that posts on a brand’s Facebook page only reaches 16% of their fans. That’s insanely
low, proving that remaining on Facebook is no longer free even from an exposure standpoint.
Facebook “Premium” Advertising (including mobile):
Premium for Facebook guarantees impressions and placement for Sponsored Stories and premium ads in the news feed, home
pages and log-out page, in addition to their former placement on the right hand side of the page. These ads are derived from
Facebook page posts. Premium stories and ads show up on tablets and mobile devices now as well.
Well, these ads will certainly keep brands and their community managers busy churning out content–irregardless if your a brand
who naturally creates content or not. I’m not sure this is a truly viable option for all brands. Additionally, I believe this isn’t a
compelling mobile advertising opportunity. Considering over half of Facebook’s universe logs in primarily thought mobile, brands
must cut their odds of reaching people by 50% from the get-go.
Appendix
The company is finally trying to monetize mobile, a little bit, selling an ad product that guarantees brands that their "fans" will see
posts to brand pages on Facebook, even if Facebook has to push them into user News Feeds on desktop or mobile.
http://www.facebook.com/business/fmc
New Media & Marketing: http://bit.ly/HPI8gy
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81.
Appendix
FACEBOOK HOLDS THEIR FIRST fMC.
At fMC, Facebook announced a variety of improvements and changes. Primarily the changes centered around new
offerings for marketers in the areas of analytics, ads, and timeline. Below (and on the next few slides) I’ve recapped a
few of the changes I found most interesting.
Facebook Timeline & Brand Pages Updates:
Private Messages Between Brands and Users
Brands will be able to send and receive private messages with users. They claim this will allow for much deeper consumer
interaction and will also enable community managers to take extended customer inquiries off the Timeline and into a private
message.
So in other words, Facebook has given brands a way to hide negative conversations from their page or timeline.
For a company who talks about the need to be open and transparent, this is bit of a step backwards.
Appendix
http://www.facebook.com/business/fmc
New Media & Marketing: http://bit.ly/HPI8gy
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82.
Appendix
FACEBOOK HOLDS THEIR FIRST fMC.
At fMC, Facebook announced a variety of improvements and changes. Primarily the changes centered around new
offerings for marketers in the areas of analytics, ads, and timeline. Below (and on the next few slides) I’ve recapped a
few of the changes I found most interesting.
New Facebook Ad Offerings:
Facebook Direct Messaging (Another Way to Look at Private Messages):
Here's how the direct messaging system will work: If a Facebook user sends brands a message, they can answer back - though consumers must initiate the dialogue.
Brand pages were previously relegated to responding to customer concerns only via wall post responses. I think these quotes sum it up nicely:
"The problems it's going to create for community management,
“Yet Another Social CRM Channel - Help or Headache?
customer care, and one-to-one responses are going to be relatively
Facebook introduced the direct messaging feature among a
significant," said Michael Scissons, CEO of social media marketing
slew of ad product announcements on Wednesday. With the
company Syncapse. "You think of these large brands and the
news, one could almost hear a pack of CRM directors groan,
challenges they've had with simply publishing [on Facebook]. Now they
realizing they'll need to add Facebook to phone, email, live chat,
are managing the two-way dialogue in a one-to-one manner. It's going
Twitter, etc. on their laundry list of channel concerns.”
to create a significant amount of work."
"Bob Kraut, SVP of advertising and marketing communications "Brands who take their consumer relationships seriously are already
for Arby's, suggested the direct messages may help firms avert monitoring and responding frequently to fans' comments and questions
comment threads that spiral out of control, causing bad on Facebook," said Lisa Mabe, founder of Washington, DC-based
branding. "This [will] lower the risk and be better for customers in marketing and PR firm Hewar Communications. "Similarly, consumers
the long run," he said. "There will be more people in the game, will expect brands to acknowledge and get back to them in a timely
Appendix
and maybe less transparency. But maybe the customer is fine manner via the new private messages. Brands absolutely must stay on
with that. It's the customer that counts." top of their private messages coming in from consumers or else risk
turning off or even losing customers."
(Right...the customer is fine with less transparency, not the
circumventing a huge PR nightmare.)
http://www.clickz.com/clickz/news/2156896/facebooks-direct-messaging-brands-talking NEXT

83.
Appendix
FACEBOOK HOLDS THEIR FIRST fMC.
At fMC, Facebook announced a variety of improvements and changes. Primarily the changes centered around new
offerings for marketers in the areas of analytics, ads, and timeline. Below (and on the next few slides) I’ve recapped a
few of the changes I found most interesting.
New Facebook Ad Offerings:
Facebook “Log-Out Experience” Ad Unit:
Facebook is starting to take a different approach to advertising, which traditionally uses a cost-
per-click or cost-per-views model with their new log-out ad unit. At $700,000 each day, this brand
exclusive ad unit is worth about $256 million a year — assuming it stays at this price — which
represents an extra 6.7 percent of revenue growth (based off $3.7 billion in revenue in 2011).
While Facebook has tried to condition advertisers to take a more social approach, the log-out is a
shotgun for those looking for the most reach and frequency as quickly as possible.
Things to consider:
+ Targeting isn’t ideal as users can be targeted only by age and gender, according to Facebook.
+ Reach of the log-out ads is limited to the number of users who actually log out -- a subset of Facebook's
U.S. audience. (When announcing log-out ads last month at the fMC conference for marketers, company
executives said that 37 million U.S. users log out daily.) However, these “logger-outers” represent only a
subset of Facebook’s universe. Why do these people log-out? What’s their demographic/psychographic/
technographic background? Are they logging out because they are on a shared computer? A work
computer?
+ While I’m always down for testing, the price tag is too pricey for most brands’ to serve simply as a test. But
Appendix
maybe most importantly, the ads, should history repeat itself, will fail with Facebook members, but brands
will snag them anyway.
http://read.bi/GQEyUW
http://bit.ly/GNJ9Vb NEXT
http://bit.ly/GPsulF

84.
Appendix
FACEBOOK HOLDS THEIR FIRST fMC.
At fMC, Facebook announced a variety of improvements and changes. Primarily the changes centered around new
offerings for marketers in the areas of analytics, ads, and timeline. Below (and on the next few slides) I’ve recapped a
few of the changes I found most interesting.
Facebook Timeline & Brand Pages Updates:
Facebook Page Insights
Page insights will start reporting data with a latency of 5-10 minutes, not two or more
days as it currently stands.
I guess it’s great that after 5+ years of existence, brands can finally see a limited
selection of reporting in real-time. It’s amazing to me this wasn’t fixed years ago.
Seems like a pending IPO forced the correction.
Appendix
http://www.facebook.com/business/fmc
http://tcrn.ch/H2qSXl
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85.
Appendix
FACEBOOK STARTS TEACHING BRANDS HOW TO BE SOCIAL.
With Alicia Keyes playing music in the background, Facebook presented some pretty audacious recommendations to brands
at fMC. A few of my favorite, jaw-dropping ones are included below. To see the rest, visit the link below.
Implication for marketers: Start treating Facebook like a vendor. Stop providing them with the all-access-pass to your brand.
Appendix
Want a social blueprint for how to be a social brand?
Facebook has you covered.
Not sure how to structure your company?
Facebook has you covered.
http://www.facebook.com/business/fmc NEXT

86.
Appendix
FACEBOOK STARTS TEACHING BRANDS HOW TO BE SOCIAL.
Facebook presented some pretty audacious recommendations to brands at fMC. A few of my favorite, jaw-dropping ones are
included below. To see the rest, visit the link below.
Implication for marketers: Start treating Facebook like a vendor. Stop providing them with the all-access-pass to your brand.
Appendix
Want to know what’s wrong with your corporate culture? Want to know what you’re doing wrong in your social marketing efforts (in other words Facebook)?
Facebook has you covered. Want a solution that provides more revenue to Facebook? Facebook has you covered.
http://www.facebook.com/business/fmc NEXT

87.
Appendix
FACEBOOK STARTS TEACHING BRANDS HOW TO BE SOCIAL.
With Alicia Keyes playing music in the background, Facebook also shared the findings of a self-financed Forrester study that
looked appears to focus on social media (not just Facebook exclusively). To see the studies, visit the link below.
Implication for marketers: Start treating Facebook like a vendor. Stop providing them with the all-access-pass to your brand.
You want some Facebook-funded research, which served as the backbone to everything shared at fMC, but that doesn’t delve
into any of the outstanding questions marketers have? Facebook has you covered with these two Forrester studies:
Appendix
http://www.facebook.com/business/fmc NEXT

88.
Appendix
FACEBOOK STARTS TEACHING BRANDS HOW TO BE SOCIAL.
In March, Paul Adams, Facebook’s global brand experience manager chided brands for their behavior in social (e.g.
Facebook) in a presentation titled, Why Marketers Misunderstand Facebook.
His Point: Whenever a new mass medium is invented, marketers try to force their old habits into the new platform. That doesn't work, and it's only when marketers learn
how the new medium really works that they become successful using it for advertising. To prove his theory, Adams condensed the entire history of media, from the invention
of the printing press in 1440 through to today, into just two well-designed PowerPoint slides. The first one notes which media were subject to censorship and which
contributed to the death of privacy; the second notes the occasions in which people attempted to use new media as a replacement—rather than an addition—for the old.
His stated example: The telephone, Adams explains, was originally thought to be a fantastic solution to broadcasting. You’d dial-in, leave the receiver dangling, and listen
along with all the others to the day’s broadcast.
My Point: Facebook isn’t social. Facebook is like a brands’ customer service 800 number. I think it’s less that brands don’t get Facebook. It’s more like they understand the
giant undertaking and wonder whether it’s worth it. With little to no positive, clearly documented ROI to show, Adams just comes off as a typical arrogant Facebook
employee overstepping their bounds and missing the huge elephant in the room–their platform is starting to die, it allows for limited brand engagement, it doesn’t deliver
ROI, and to do it right can be an expensive pain in the ass.
Appendix
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89.
Appendix
WHAT’S A SOCIAL RESET?
Most brands started on Facebook without truly understanding why and how it would benefit their business. Their social strategy (if
there even was one) was more of a follow the leader vs. the right thing to build my brand. With volumes of data and anecdotal
evidence, we need to pause what we’re doing. For the moment, we need to stop building more branded apps, stop with the like-
driven campaigns, & stop including Facebook in brainstorms, and internal meetings,
Right now, It’s time for some tough self-reflection...
Why am I on Facebook?
Is my audience even on Facebook in a meaningful way?
Are they even my fans?
What value does my brand derive, and is it set up for success?
Are there other, possibly better-suited, places for my brand to exist (even beyond the usual suspects of Twitter, YouTube, etc.)
based on what I know about my target audiences’ behaviors?
This presentation is dedicated to all the advertisers, marketers, entrepreneurs, creatives, clients, users, gurus, people, humans, and
the like–we need a social reset, a pause in the insanity to reflect and redefine social. Let’s look at the evidence from the past few
years–the data. Let’s be honest about our issues with legal, corporate structure, and political realities. Let’s look at the audiences
and see what they are up to and where else they may be. Let’s firm up tangible, beneficial, business-driving success metrics.
Appendix
One final caveat: I’m not saying brands and agencies haven’t mapped this out already. It’s my hypothesis that the pressure
Facebook has been placing on them since announcing the IPO has made waters murky and most haven’t had time to re-evaluate.
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90.
Appendix
WHAT’S A SOCIAL RESET?
Today a remarkable series of events have led to social being equivalent to Facebook. However, even in the face of
Facebook’s explosive growth and marketers exponentially increasing financial commitment, engagement is only slightly
greater today than it was in Q1’2009.
Appendix
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91.
Appendix
WHY A SOCIAL RESET IS NEEDED?
As shown in the previous slides, increased spending by brands is projected in 2012. However, for all the increased
spend and interest being showered on Facebook by most brands, they are getting little in return.
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92.
Appendix
WHY A SOCIAL RESET IS NEEDED?
There’s a huge gap between where brands are investing their budgets and what channels yielded the best results.
http://gim.ie/ywSw
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http://gim.ie/ywSv
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93.
Appendix
WHY A SOCIAL RESET IS NEEDED?
There’s a huge gap between where brands are investing their budgets and what channels yielded the best results.
Here’s another data set proving the same point.
http://gim.ie/ywV6 http://gim.ie/ywVP
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94.
Appendix
WHY A SOCIAL RESET IS NEEDED?
This social inflation is literally taking budget away from digital, proven, effective, mission critical initiatives like SEO and email.
Appendix
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95.
Appendix
WHY A SOCIAL RESET IS NEEDED?
Because CMO’s are taking actions based on misguided beliefs.
Social media is not free.
Social media is time intensive, and
your time is valuable. As your presence
grows you may need to pay for tools or
additional staff, but at minimum you
need to account for the value of the
time you commit.
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96.
Appendix
MY PERSONAL FEELINGS ON FACEBOOK...
The point of this slide is to acknowledge that although I may personally dislike Facebook, I always push opinions to the
side and dive in to the behaviors of my brands’ target audiences.
Also, the quote on the right of the slide is part of a brilliant piece written by Alex Pasternack over on Vice’s blog,
MOTHERBOARD, a few years ago. He beautifully articulated my opinion of Facebook back in 2010. You can check
out his post here: http://bit.ly/wSks6q
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97.
Appendix
WHAT IS AN 8-MILE SPEECH?
In the final battle in the movie 8-Mile, Eminem preempts the bashing or trash-talking one could throw at him and eliminates his foes’
ammunition in the process (e.g. “i know everything he’s gotta say against me. i am white i am a fuckin bum. i do live in a trailer with
my mom...”). This is my 8-mile pre-empt. I don’t know everything, and am not a digital prophet by any means. I purely am responding
to experiences I’ve dealt with in the past few years and trying to make a topic I’m passionate about discussed or contemplated.
I’m by no means a digital prophet. And I think titles like this one are asinine (cough AOL).
My creativity is a combination of left and right brain. It comes from synthesizing, finding patterns, turning data into insight, listening to audiences, having an unconventional, “why not” attitude, actively
seeking knowledgeable criticism, studying the ‘why” of human behavior, trusting my gut, and pretty much having no fear in failing.
Most recently I was the Digital Planning Director, Creative I left in November 2011 to join a startup I’m psyched about.
Innovations Director at TBWAChiatDay.
I don’t have a Facebook page for 7 compelling reasons. I never had the urge to have one, status updates were akin to spam in my opinion, I can be OCD about privacy and corporations profiting off my data, a
clean SEO is important to me, I felt posting updates felt narcissistic, and honestly, I’m not cool enough to have one.)
For Facebook testing & observation I use an alias named, ‘Lola’. My Facebook-less life is akin to a drug dealer who doesn’t sample his or her product, but knows the habits of their audience well. (I’m not alone in my
personal ‘anti-Facebook-socialness’ by the way–Google Mr. Max Palevsky). And no, I’m not condoning drug dealing, I’m highlighting a shared similarity.
I only blog or tweet to discuss my personal, non-work passions. And I do so under an alias because unless you’re into the same passions it’s partially none of your business and nothing you’d care about and I tend to
go by MetaVintage.
At work, my passion is my client. Their brand. Not mine. I believe all agency and marketing folk should be immersed in their brand, not building a brand for themselves.
I’m direct. I don’t shy away from a debate. The big BUT is that I absolutely accept and am open to being proven differently. Debates move things forward and make things better.
Please refrain from bashing BrainSport’s website—there is a I have rationale for why they are the way they are. Hear me out first before you bash it.
reason for everything
I don’t hate Facebook and I’m not really anti-social. I’m not saying Facebook is terrible for every brand. Most of what Facebook is good for could be executed through a great CRM strategy more
effectively and efficiently (enter my experience on Adobe). Also, I actually love that social puts a lot of power back in the people’s hands.
I often speak in hyperbole for added dramatic effect. So when you see it in action throughout the deck, please bear with me.
Appendix
I am strongly opposed to marketing bullshit. And jargon and metaphors.
This is not a hater speech. A hater speech relies on emotional appeal. I plan to come at you with tangible facts and anecdotes from real world experience.
I have nothing to gain from giving this talk. Except the high possibility of getting a bunch of excruciating shit, push back and nitpicking.
I have no doubt Facebook could give a shit about this talk. And I’m cool with that.
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98.
Appendix
GOOD FACEBOOK PAIRINGS.
Like I mentioned before, I believe Facebook can be compelling for certain brands or initiatives that share certain
Facebook-friendly characteristics. Two recent examples–the backlash Rush Limbaugh advertisers recently
experienced within social media as well as the the rapid spread of the Kony 2012 video.
The phenomenon that was the Kony 2012 video was a
success not simply because of Facebook, but because of
the collective social effect it was designed to leverage–
86.6MM views on Vimeo and Youtube (and counting), a How unfortunate to be the community managers for the brands advertising on
viral slingshot of tweets (many by highly followed celebs), Rush in early March. An absolutely blitz by angry consumers quickly convinced
Facebook’s 1.4MM likes, the mass media picking it up, over 44 advertisers to withdrawal support from Rush’s show. For those brands who
etc. The point is that without all of these other social didn’t act quickly, it got ugly. So ugly that most brands pulled public-facing
Appendix
platforms in conjunction with Facebook, Kony 2012 would comments and tweets in the short term and continued with their planned tweets
most likely not have become the sensation it was. and posts as planned. It was absolutely cringe worthy as it was clear many brands
weren’t ready to deal with the shitstorm. Rush has said salacious comments
before, but it’s the wide spread adoption and inherent comfort level the masses feel
towards social media, the fact it targeted women who are avid and vocal users of
social, and the ease at which you could share your opinion directly with the brands
you wanted to made this particular comment have more dire consequences.
http://nyti.ms/HfQf8y http://read.bi/HalOAQ
http://nyti.ms/HfQpNd http://abcn.ws/HfQ64X
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99.
Appendix
THE IMPETUS FOR THIS PRESENTATION.
This past November I took a leap of faith and went to a startup I truly think can help people. Prior to joining BrainSport, I was the
Digital Strategy Director/ Creative Innovation Director at TBWAChiatDay. I had the unique privilege to work across some amazing
global, Fortune 500 brands.
I submitted this topic last July in pure frustration late one night from work. We had just been presented a deck from Facebook
claiming brand sites would soon be replaced by Facebook. I was sick of writing presentations and strategies I didn’t believe in.
They were becoming formulaic as we kept hitting up against the same anti-social realities most large brands encounter
(moderation, legal restrictions on UGC, no staff to manage, etc.) I sat through multiple presentations from Facebook across
multiple clients with a swapped client logo, the same vocabulary, the same false promises, the same self-centeredness, the same
ideas and overstepping of bounds, and the same bully tactics. I’ve been lucky enough to work with and befriend some of the most
genius and creative minds in the advertising and marketing world. I consistently witnessed their talent go down the drain as
Facebook provided them with the ugliest, least inspiring, constricted and rigid canvas to paint upon. We were waisting their time on
ideas that will never be worthy of more than a shallow ‘like.’
And I quite frankly who better? An overwhelming majority of so-called social media actually have never planned and executed a
social campaign in their life. I’ve done more social than is probably healthy.
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100.
Appendix
A FEW CAVEATS.
These points are simply my opinions based on both past and present experiences. However, I wanted to highlight two
points that go beyond opinion to fact.
1. Pew & Mashable Under the Spell: I’ve purposely stayed away from including research from Pew & Mashable within
this deck because I believe Mashable has lost objectivity when it comes to Facebook as there hasn’t been a strong
negative editorial on Facebook in months–months filled with changes and mistakes. Additionally, I wouldn’t be
surprised if some of the ridiculous studies coming from Pew weren’t somehow funded silently by Facebook as they are
doing a slew of research with social media and nearly every study showcases Facebook as a hero. All of their social
studies live here if you’re interested in checking it out: http://bit.ly/H9RhV7.
2. Bad Data & Misinformation: Somewhat dovetailing with the point mentioned above, there is an incredible amount of
misinformed data being syndicated online. Having been up to my ears in Facebook to an even greater degree for the
past few months, it’s been startling for me to see what’s omitted in the research Facebook and their partners publish.
I’ve purposefully tried to stick to the same few research sources throughout this presentation in an attempt to have a
consistent baseline. I have a myriad of studies that are incongruous and/or only telling half the story. However, my point
in highlighting my experience is to bring awareness and ensure others begin to pay closer attention to sources &
methodology and to think deeper on what other questions my be left outstanding.
One final note, Red Bull & Apple aren’t the only brands doing things correct. However, they are two great examples who
have been doing it right before the Facebook-era, during Facebook’s era, beyond Facebook’s platform, and will continue
to develop lasting bonds with their customers in the post-Facebook era.
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101.
REASON 1: WE’RE EXPERIENCING A
SOCIAL-CARGO-CULT AND IT’S
DISTORTING THE LANDSCAPE

102.
Appendix
WHY IS UNDERSTANDING “CARGO CULT” IMPORTANT?
I spent a majority of time here because the principle is somewhat laced throughout all five reasons to stop investing in Facebook. It gets to the root of why my definition of
“social” or “engagement” will most likely be significantly different than the definitions provided by a brand, a marketer, a CMO, a Facebook sales rep, etc.
Additionally, I believe looking at constructs of the past and applying them to the future is simply wise. It provides a means to navigate technological innovation when the
new is so new that no one truly can be an expert–especially in moments where we cannot be certain how the masses will respond without actually giving them time to
respond.
Appendix
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103.
Appendix
A DEEPER DIVE INTO WHAT A CARGO CULT IS...
What is a “cargo cult”?
The term refers to the real-life ethnological phenomenon of what happens when a technologically primitive society comes in contact with a technologically more advanced
society. The term is used to describe anyone else who imitates or mimics superficial features of a system (in this case, military logistics) and hopes to replicate the original's
success, without any thought or understanding of the intrinsic workings of the system. (Think the Gods Must Be Crazy or Digital Non-Natives colliding with Digital Natives.)
What is the most famous occurrence of cargo cult in history?
During WWII, partly because of the limitations of aircraft of the time, several airbases were needed in the many South Pacific islands like Papua New Guinea and
Melanesia so that bombers could refuel and such. The natives of these island lived primitively with absolutely no technology or outside influences.
One day, out of the sky, planes began dropping the most modern, progressive innovations literally on top of them on a daily basis. The Allies shared this technology with
the hospitable natives. However, when the war ended several years later, we left as suddenly as we had arrived. Military bases were abandoned and the steady flow of
cargo which had altered the Islanders’ lives completely dried up.
The men and women of Tanna Island had grown to enjoy the radios, trucks, boats, watches, iceboxes, medicine, Coca-Cola, canned meat, and candy, so they set into
motion a plan to bring back the cargo. They believed they had surreptitiously learned the secrets of summoning the cargo by observing the practices of the American
airmen, sailors and soldiers.
So, they made an understandable mistake: they began mimicking the behavior of their military visitors and started crafting makeshift airfields, headphones, and even signal
towers, out of things like bamboo and indigenous trees, eagerly waiting for another shipment.
Renowned physicist Richard Feynman coined the phrase “cargo cult science” based on such cults. The term draws a metaphor for research which is polluted by the
mind’s tendency to cherry-pick evidence that supports the desired outcome. Though it is tempting to look down on these islanders for their misguided assumptions, they
are simply an extreme example of this very human bias. For them it was easier to believe that the control towers, headsets, and runways were the cause of the cargo-
Appendix
carrying airplanes rather than an effect, so they closed their minds to alternative explanations.
What is the most modern day resurgence of Cargo Cult besides the one occurring within social media?
Modern design, especially web design, information architecture and interaction design. In their worse misapplication, design patterns can lapse into a sort of Cargo Cult, in
which past structures and layouts and flows are imitated and reproduced with no real understanding of how or why they worked in their original context.
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104.
Appendix
A DEEPER DIVE INTO WHAT A SOCIAL CARGO CULT IS...
What is a Social Cargo Cult?
The original Cargo Cults were people overawed by more advanced technology (in the famous case of World War II era aviation artifacts) who began imitating the forms of
what they saw (wooden radio towers, torch-lit runways, counterfeit uniforms) in hopes of bringing the benefit ("cargo") that they had witnessed flowing from these same
rituals and objects in the past.
The modern-day Social Cargo Cults are the behaviors of people [brands, marketers and most advertising agencies] overawed by more advanced technology [in this
case the surge of activity within social, Facebook jaw-dropping numbers, the overnight billionaires living the American Dream, and all the sexy VC & start-up sizzle that
comes with it] who began imitating and mimicking the forms of what they saw [in this case the social jargon created by Facebook and so-called social media experts,
meaningless, intangible vocabulary, words not backed up matching actions, efforts with no return communicated as successful, the hype in the press, the words other
CMO’s are using, the rhetoric spewed in the speeches they are giving at social starf*cking conferences, etc.] in hopes of bringing the benefit [fame, awards, glory, peer
recognition, career growth, earned media, and perhaps a true connection with fans] that they had witnessed flowing from these same rituals and objects in the past
[by other brands in the past].
A Social Cargo Cult occurred when inexperienced social media ‘gurus’ and Facebook’s massive marketing tidal wave collided to create a social vocabulary adopted and
mimicked by marketers. As a result, nearly every marketer can speak social, but most do not know what the hell they actually mean. Marketers are imitating or reproducing
the social efforts of others with no real understanding of why it worked or what it meant in its original context.
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105.
Appendix
A SOCIAL CARGO CULT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THINGS LIKE:
A brand opening a Facebook page and spending millions in advertising, but having an intern managing it.
A brand creating a Facebook app that crops photos somehow, but that fans never touch. Yet, Adweek still features them in an
article, and the CMO can point to it as evidence of their digital brilliance.
A marketer speaking at an AMA conference about the benefits of social media although never successfully executing a social
campaign ever and/or not having one metric besides likes to prove it.
A Social Cargo Cult occurs when a marketer says their primary objective on Facebook is to drive sales (35%) but in reality they
can’t prove that metric so they fall back to likes (60%).
Or when a marketer says a critical marketing objective is building and fostering a community via engagement on Facebook, but
less than 2% of a brand’s Facebook fans engage with their page on average.
And it’s this... (P&G laying off a bunch of people because their CMO believes social is more efficient with little to no evidence on
how besides pointing to Old Spice’s earned media impressions. On a side note, Facebook sourced success with P&G in an update
to their IPO filing...very interesting indeed.)
Appendix
http://bit.ly/HGO0NS
http://bit.ly/HEfI8G NEXT
http://bit.ly/HGNpvF
http://read.bi/HEJsnR http://read.bi/HBSfJu

106.
Appendix
SYMPTOMS OF A SOCIAL CARGO CULT.
Social simulation plagued by a lack of depth of knowledge, understanding, or experience by marketers requesting work from agencies, while at the same
time turning to Facebook salespersons for social advice, has created a digital environment where most brands:
Believe the same --> Facebook’s never-ending advice syndication and direct brand engagement coupled with inexperienced social gurus has led to the
dissemination of consistent misinformation
See the same --> Theoretical social experts’ ramblings take this misinformation and syndicates it to make matters worse
Say the same --> So now we all begin to simulate what we see and read and begin speaking the same jargon
Do the same --> Facebook’s inflexibility, the brand’s aversion to risk and loss of control, and emulation result in the same dumb, forced social executions
Spend the same --> Bullied by Facebook, brands follow the platform’s recommendations, which don’t necessarily help generate revenue for their brand
but do make Facebook a sick amount of money
Appendix
http://bit.ly/HS0BHG
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