Social Networks have become something essential in our lives. Its rare to find someone who doesn’t have twitter or Instagram, even more rare to find someone that doesn’t have Facebook. After Facebook’s great success many social networks were developed; Twitter and Instagram were the most successful and along with Facebook they have positioned themselves as the most popular social networks. Many have tried to imitate their success but have failed to do so.
This is an example of positioning. In” Positioning: The Battle of your mind” Al Rice and Jack Trout say that the easiest way to get into peoples mind is by being the first. Others may offer a service or product as good as yours but you have competitive advantage over them. In Twitter’s and Instagram’s case this is true but not for Facebook. Before Facebook there was myspace a social network many have now forgotten existed.
Ello is a new social network that has gained a lot of attention in the last few days. Ellos strategy has been to be the “anti- Facebook”. In the “about” section of Ello you can read “”Ello doesn’t sell ads. Nor do we sell data about you to third parties,” Its manifesto says “We believe a social network can be a tool for empowerment. Not a tool to deceive, coerce and manipulate — but a place to connect, create and celebrate life.You are not a product.”
In” Positioning: The Battle of your mind” Al Rice and Jack Trout say that if a brand is not number one it must relate itself to the number one brand to be successful, this way it can position itself as the alternative. Ello is not only doing this, but it is also trying to reposition Facebook by stating all the negative things about this social network and using this to their advantage by being what Facebook is not “a simple and beautiful ad-free social network”.
In contrast with Facebook, in order to be part of Ello, you must receive an invitation. During Ello’s first days they were receiving 4000 sign up requests per hour, in the last days that number has increased to 35,000 sign up requests per hour.
Rice, Al, and Jack Trout. “Product Positioning.” Product Positioning. Quick MBA, n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2014. <http://www.quickmba.com/marketing/ries-trout/positioning/>.
Kashmir, Hill. “Ello vs. Facebook.” Forbes. Forbes Magazine, n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2014. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2014/10/01/facebook-vs-ello/>.
What Is Ello? ‘Anti-Facebook’ Takes Stand on Privacy, Advertising.” CTVNews. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2014. <http://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/what-is-ello-anti-facebook-takes-stand-on-privacy-advertising-1.2028230>.