If the day ever comes when we think searching through our Facebook friends' opinions on restaurants, music et al is going to give us results that are more relevant/valid than a YouTube/Amazon/Google recommendation/result, just shoot me.
#1 People joined groups/added interests ten thousand years ago and forgot about them, and/or just 'Like' whatever their friends say to like, so that aforementioned friends can win whatever ridiculous Facebook contest marketers are thrusting on them this week. The groups/pages people note they like on Facebook? They probably like them the same way they're friends with their friends list on Facebook. Which brings me to...
# 2 'Friends' is a really loose definition for the contacts on your Facebook list, so unless you're the gossip queen/statistician-in-making who wants to know everyone's preference on everything just because, why wouldn't you just ask *specific* people whose opinions you respected? I definitely don't trust the same people's opinions when it comes to a restaurant vs a book. And to be perfectly honest, I usually find people's opinions on Twitter/Yelp/Amazon/YouTube. I find people's look-at-my-life-and-be-jealous pictures & updates on Facebook. Which brings me to...
#3 I've seen what comes up on my Facebook feed. There's no possible way I'm finding answers there, unless the question was 'Ripped-off sentimental/funny quotes' or 'Who had the best party everrr' or 'Who loves their husband/wife the most'.
I don't even know why I'm so outraged by Facebook's announcement of their new Social Graph, but oh my God, it makes me want to shout. Twitter hashtags make sense, Google search makes sense, FB social graph is just... at best, pointless.
I'm sure marketers will be all over it a year from now, and Facebook will release stats on earned impressions generating a higher conversion rate than paid impressions, and so on, but meh.
Fb's marketing strategies have been poorly implemented. A social graph is a pseudo attempt at salvaging paid marketing to come on board (remember InkFruit's annoying ads right in the middle of the page?)
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