Re: Why advertise now? (Claire Grayston’s blog)

Deactivation from Facebook. I was thinking about it while I was sitting on my rocking chair in my room, 8592 kilometers far from my hometown. Although I own a not-smartphone without an internet connection.

Two days ago I read Claire’s blog post about the first Facebook commercial and in two seconds this flowed in front of my eyes. Facebook fascinates me a lot and the points that Claire tackled matched the questions arising in my mind.

http://youtu.be/c7SjvLceXgU

Facebook 1st commercial ever | The things that connect us

This is the first time that Facebook tells how it thinks itself in a direct way unless Zuckerberg’s words. A traditional way. The new technologies, the newest devices are not shown at all because Facebook positions itself in the same level of the most usual means of connection. A traditional advertisement with traditional elements for a traditional tool. That persuasive voice starts comparing ‘thesocialnetwork’  to everyday life elements like chairs and then it widens the perspective talking about the nation, a connection as a whole, and finally about the universe. Where we feel alone, but we are not. Not thanks to chairs or airplanes, but thanks to Facebook which is presented as a traditional element of nowadays communication, but it is more than this: it challenges the universe and its loneliness. Through Facebook the loneliness will lose. I think that this is the message, this is a silent celebration without numbers (1 billion users), but throughout feelings.

Facebook | Connections

Though you don’t know the Facebook tools (timeline, etc..), you know that it exists. They didn’t need to advertise the features of the product, but they needed a straightforward mean like a commercial to say ‘Hey we are here for you. Don’t leave us.’ I agree with Claire about the doubts Facebook has to deal with. I add that the commercial targets the potential customers, but above all the aim is to convince the users not to deactivate or delete their profile. Facebook is connection, connection is Facebook. If you quit, you’ll be lost (according to them).

I don’t think it’s true, but actually I’m sitting on my rocking chair and my profile is still active on Facebook.

Sources:
– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7SjvLceXgU
– http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/facebook-connection-map-3×2.png