Inside Facebook
Inside Facebook |
- Facebook Displaying Unread Messages from Pages in a New Updates Module
- Moontoast’s Impulse is a Dedicated Ecommerce Facebook App for Musicians
- Facebook Careers Posts: Dublin, Data Centers, Marketing, Singapore and Recruiting
- Only a Handful of Tickets Left – Inside Social Apps InFocus 2011 on January 25th
- Facebook’s Webinar for Social Good Provides Nonprofits Tips
- Redbox’s Movie Awards App Complements TV Content
| Facebook Displaying Unread Messages from Pages in a New Updates Module Posted: 13 Jan 2011 06:58 PM PST Facebook is displaying a new “Updates” sidebar module which shows users unread messages sent to them by Pages. Users will see the Updates module in the right sidebar while viewing their own profile and other sections of the site. They can choose to view an update, mark it as read, or ‘x’ it to reveal another update. These updates are usually filtered into the Other folder of the inbox of the new Messages product. The Updates module and counters will help prevent users from missing important Messages that Facebook had hidden in attempt to reduce noise in the primary inbox.
Since the Other folder doesn’t show red notifications upon a user receiving Messages that are routed there, it can be easy to forget the folder entirely. We discussed how the lack of an overt notification mechanism was one of the main deficiencies of the New Messages product, but Facebook has now moved to counteract the problem in an unobtrusive way. Before the New Messages product was implemented and the inbox was split, Facebook began showing an Unread Messages sidebar module to similarly surface skipped content. By analyzing which updates users view, mark as read, or remove from the module, Facebook may be able to improve the Messages filtering algorithm to keep the best Page updates in the primary inbox. As more businesses and users join Facebook, and malicious parties follow them, the site’s ability to filter out spam will become increasingly vital to maintaining a high quality experience. Simultaneously, Facebook will need to continue protecting users from losing good content to overly aggressive filters through products like the Updates module. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moontoast’s Impulse is a Dedicated Ecommerce Facebook App for Musicians Posted: 13 Jan 2011 02:36 PM PST Moontoast, an app developer with ties to Nashville record label Big Machine Records, launched an ecommerce application for musicians called Impulse this week. Instead of trying to duplicate existing full-featured tools, Impulse attempts to complement these solutions by allowing artists to sell downloads and eventually merchandise directly from their Facebook Page through a 15% revenue sharing program with Moontoast. The app’s lack of subscription or start-up fees and the chance to cut out more expensive middlemen like iTunes make Impulse attractive to both starving bands and major labels. However, Impulse could become redundant if the more comprehensive musician apps focus on ecommerce.
To use Impulse, artists register through Facebook Connect and upload their songs to Moontoast’s website where they are hosted for free. Musicians can then set prices, select to only give users a 30 second preview of songs, include album artwork, and customize their app’s color scheme. It’s free to add a header image that brands the app — something that BandPage charges for. Since Impulse doesn’t offer many extraneous features, it’s quick for artists and managers to set up and add as a tab to their Facebook Page. When users click on the tab, they’ll see a landing page explaining that the app lets them buy and listen to music. Since Facebook had scheduled to migrate away from FBML tab applications at the end of 2010, Moontoast built Impulse as an iframe app. Unfortunately the migration has been delayed, meaning users are currently directed away from the artist’s Page to a separate application. This also prevents the app from requiring users to Like the artist’s Page in order to listen to songs. Once on the Impulse app, users can listen to songs, scroll through different music products, and add items to a shopping cart. The “add to cart” button doesn’t change when clicked. Since only a small numeral appears next to the cart icon, it can be difficult to tell if an item has been successfully added until the warning about a duplicate add appears. When users go to checkout, a PayPal popup appears allowing them to enter payment details without losing their place on Facebook.
Purchased downloads or organized through the Impulse Tracker, which lowers the frequency of requests for replacement downloads. Users can share the application, an album, or an individual song to their news feed, though there’s no option to post directly to the wall of a specific friend or invite friends to the app. Songs play in-line from feed stories which direct users back to the artist’s app, generating leads.
The 11-person, Nashville-based Moontoast is funded by The Martin Companies and several country music stars including Wyonna Judd and Ben Paisley. The company was founded to create ecommerce and engagement widgets for some of Big Machine Records’ artists including Taylor Swift. The developer’s client services team is courting major and indie labels in an effort to sign on more artists.
Moontoast’s cofounder and CTO Marcus Whitney told us he thinks musicians shouldn’t abandon their MySpace profiles like RootMusic is recommending, as they still have good search engine rankings. Instead, they should keep updating them, preferably by syncing them with other presences the way Moontoast is hoping to allow. For now, Moontoast’s Impulse is an easy way for artists to avoid using popular online music stores that offer music by other artists that can distract fans. However, many music listeners have already added a credit card to stores like iTunes and Amazon, and might have to endure the friction of inputting payment details to PayPal before they can make purchases. More troubling for the app is that comprehensive tool suites by ReverbNation and RootMusic already offer much of Impulse’s ecommerce functionality, or soon will, leaving little need for an extra Page tab. Artists want a one-stop shop for at least their Facebook marketing need, if not the entire web, rather than a partial solution they’ll have to augment with other services. Impulse must evolve into an undeniably superior ecommerce app if it doesn’t want to be squeezed out of the market. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Facebook Careers Posts: Dublin, Data Centers, Marketing, Singapore and Recruiting Posted: 13 Jan 2011 02:03 PM PST
The Data Center Contracts Manager and Site Selection position that was added will be crucial to helping Facebook open more of its own data centers in the future. The description notes the candidate will help execute the "long term data center strategy,' support site selection, participate in contract negotiations, work in planning, oversee existing data center performance” along with other responsibilities. A Head of Sales Marketing in Hamburg is being sought to work on marketing communications for all of Facebook’s advertising products across the company's agency and advertising base. Facebook wants someone with lots of experience to fill its Palo Alto-based Manager, Packaging and Programming position. The person to fill this job should have 12-plus years of marketing experience with at least 5 in digital media to help develop the company's delivery of marketing to brands and consumers. The Singapore-based Director, Online Sales & Operations, Asia Pacific is set to help Facebook "lead our emerging markets strategy in Asia Pacific. This person will be responsible for developing a go to market plan and hiring teams of great people to support Facebook's advertisers." The Sales office seems to be expanding rapidly in 2011 from the looks of the dozen jobs posted in that department this week. There's a Director of Business Development job based in Palo Alto, several Ad Operations positions in Palo Alto and Austin, Account Manager jobs in Palo Alto, Milan and Hamburg, an Agency Team Lead and Online Sales Operations in Palo Alto also. A Manager of Agency Sales job opened up in Australia to help the company, "managing media agency sales relationships, agency trading and revenue growth" in that country. There were some new posts in Software Engineering — Data Scientist #1012001, Software Engineer # 1101001 and Software Engineer, Partnerships — as well as a couple accounting jobs. At least six positions at the Dublin office were removed from the page. Everything from a Training and Development Manager, Online Sales and Operations to a Credit and Collections Analyst – Contract to marketing and analyst positions appear to have been filled at this European office, which we noted last month is set to expand over the next year. Other jobs removed this week include recruiting, data center, legal, marketing and sales positions. The Recruiting Coordinator for the Facebook Internship Program and a Recruiting Coordinator – Contractor in Hyderabad, India disappeared as well. Two Virginia-based data center positions were filled, Data Center Technician and Data Center Tech (Data Eradication). A Business Operations Manager position and Credit and Collections Manager and about 10 other marketing, sales and operations positions were gone from the Page too. For more Facebook-related jobs, check out the Inside Network Job Board. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Only a Handful of Tickets Left – Inside Social Apps InFocus 2011 on January 25th Posted: 13 Jan 2011 09:00 AM PST
Inside Social Apps InFocus 2011, our second conference on the future of monetization on social platforms, is less than two weeks away! Space is very close to sold out, so we strongly encourage you to register today: Join us in San Francisco on January 25th for our one-day summit featuring industry leaders from every corner of the social app and game ecosystem. Executives and leaders from Facebook, Google, leading social networks, mobile platforms, social game and app developers, media companies, virtual goods and payment services, and investors will all be there to tackle the most pressing issues facing the industry in 2011. We’re expecting a full house for the event — make sure your spot is reserved and register now. Who’s Speaking? We're honored to present the following confirmed speakers at Inside Social Apps InFocus 2011:
Inside Social Apps InFocus 2011 – January 25th in San Francisco Social applications first emerged in 2007, and are today maturing into a global media ecosystem. With the launch of the Facebook Platform, followed by platforms from MySpace and other social networks, developers worldwide could leverage the social graph to create new kinds of social experiences never before possible. Now, three and a half years later, what started out as sheep throwing and vampire biting has quickly become a profitable billion-dollar industry, punctuated by numerous major acquisitions by the world’s leading media companies and developers. But now, new challenges are emerging, affecting big players and new entrants alike. Inside Social Apps will investigate the latest trends and challenges for social applications, and look at what’s to come for developers throughout the space – including the growth of virtual goods and social applications on mobile devices. What are the biggest uncertainties and opportunities facing the future of social games and applications in 2011, and who is leading the way? Inside Social Apps InFocus 2011 takes place January 25th, 2011 at the Mission Bay Conference Center in San Francisco, and brings together the world's leading entrepreneurs to weigh in on the future of social app and game monetization. Inside Social Apps will be a one-day summit led by Inside Network’s Eric Eldon and Justin Smith, and will take in-depth investigative approach to the day’s discussions. At Inside Social Apps, Inside Network will work alongside founders and executives of the top social networking, social gaming, mobile social gaming, payments, and virtual goods infrastructure companies to analyze the most important issues affecting the industry. Inside Social Apps is geared towards developers on Facebook, iPhone, Android, and emerging online social platforms. Inside Social Apps will be a content-rich day of critical discussion, followed by an evening and nighttime of casual networking. Register Now
The countdown has begun and Inside Social Apps InFocus 2011 is just two weeks away! We’re expecting a full house for January’s event; to make sure your spot is reserved, please register now. From all of us at Inside Network, we hope to see you on January 25th in San Francisco at Inside Social Apps!
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| Facebook’s Webinar for Social Good Provides Nonprofits Tips Posted: 13 Jan 2011 08:30 AM PST Facebook livestreamed the Webinar for Social Good yesterday, aimed at helping non-profits and social good organizations get the most out of the platform. The webinar was hosted by Facebook's Charles Porch, who works in consumer marketing for the company, and included three non-profit workers, and Facebook Pages associate Morin Oluwole, and featured Porch's tips for non-profits using Facebook. Non-profit participants included Esther Choi, deputy director of interactive marketing for UNICEF, Chelsea Bocci, community marketing director for Kiva and Carolee Hazard, founder of The 93 Dollar Club. The women answered questions from people watching the livestream and also gave their top three tips for successful Page marketing for non-profits. We’d written on this topic previously ourselves.
Here are some of the suggestions. When marketing on Facebook, incorporate fans who already created Pages or Groups into your official site. Include fans as much as possible in organizational activities, such as competitions and voting, diversity content between educational/inspiring content and promotional posts and don't be afraid to experiment to see what works. UNICEF's Choi said her top three tips were: keep it real, keep it regulated (organized, planned) and keep it ROI-centric, meaning invest in your return, but also think about the long-term. Kiva's Bocci repeated the need to balance promotional content with other types of information, involve fans in personal ways and respond to fan posts on the Page. Founder of The 93 Dollar Club Hazard said to always remember that powerful stories go a long way on Facebook, be authentic and true and don't put out too much information. Oluwole also gave tips and answered questions during the webinar before Porch gave his Top 10 tips. These included create a voice, program your Page, use visuals, push information and also pull a response, highlight your supporters, engage with other groups to tap into their audiences, get creative with Facebook features such as Places, use Insights to get to know your fans and market your presence on Facebook. To access to the webinar visit Facebook Live. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Redbox’s Movie Awards App Complements TV Content Posted: 13 Jan 2011 07:45 AM PST Redbox, a company that has just under 25,000 automated movie rental locations across the country, has launched an interesting application allowing Facebook users to interact with movies. The Movie Awards Facebook App located on the Award Show tab on the Page allows users to make their own movie award picks, invite friends to play and "compete" with movie critics to receive a "score" once the shows air. The app is sponsored by Orville Redenbacher’s Gourmet Popping Corn and people who win through the app may be eligible for a free year of movie rentals, in addition to the app's badges that are awarded through different app actions. For example, locking in your selections garners you the "Golden Lock" badge, which then posts to your news stream. The Movie Awards app runs from the Critics' Choice Movie Awards on January 14 to the Golden Globes on January 16 and then the Oscars on February 27.
Using the app is pretty self-explanatory. There are three tabs for each of the awards shows, a user clicks on one tab, and then makes selections from a list of films for Best Picture or Best Actress, for example. Once these selections are made you may "lock" your choices, post to your Wall, invite friends to play and then Redbox asks you if you'd like to rent some of their movies. Later you can come back to see how your choices fared compared to critics' choices. What's really interesting about this application is the idea that Facebook and these types of apps can act as an accompaniment to television content. What's more, the countdown feature on the Movie Awards app adds urgency to the game, suggesting to users that they will want to check in regularly to see their scores, as they are competing against "expert" film critics. Another example of this type of TV content accompaniment is Hitpost, which is a mobile app set to launch later this month that will allow users to take pictures of the sports game you're watching with your iPhone or Android and share them. For more information about the innovative ways marketers are using Facebook to reach their target audiences please see our premium service, the Facebook Marketing Bible. |
Moontoast’s roadmap includes adding a merchandise store, allowing artists to offer free downloads in exchange for a user’s email address, and an enhanced analytics tool which builds on the basic data on sales artists can currently access.. Once the Facebook app has been more fully developed, the company is hoping to create Impulse widgets for embedding on other social networks and sites, allowing musicians to make changes to their app which are pushed to their presences across the web.
This week Facebook added about 25 jobs to its 
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