Manufacturing Intent
One of the narratives shaping up around Google vs. Facebook is that Google is about turning intent into dollars and Facebook’s model will be about turning relevance into dollars. Google makes the money they do because they advertise at the point of intent. If I’m searching for hotel rentals odds are I want to rent a hotel room, so “ads” in that context are actually helpful.
Intent still matters, but where Google capitalizes on people’s existing intent Facebook actually has the opportunity to manufacture the intent. Why do I say this? It happened to me today. Look at this picture:
This whole thing happened unselfconsciously. I didn’t know about that album, a friend of mine posted that video, and as a result I went out and purchased it that second (from iTunes, naturally).
I might be an exception since I’m something of a voracious music consumer — I’d buy 1-2 albums per week if I could find enough good music to merit it. It becomes a problem of discovery and influence, not of search. If I knew exactly what I wanted I’d just go out and get it!
This is totally anecdotal, of course, but it gives me high hopes about the potential of Project Beacon. I’m happy to receive organic recommendations from friends, even if there’s a brand lurking in the corner.
And here’s that Animal Collective video for your viewing pleasure:
Their new album is called Strawberry Jam. You should buy it.
Leave a Reply