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MySpace to Launch Social Ad Targeting on it’s Network: Seems a Lot Like Facebook’s Platfrom. Learns a LOT from Facebook’s Platform
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MySpace is preparing to boost its advertising systems, by launching a targeted ad platform called HyperTargeting and creating a Web-based system that lets vendors purchase ads without dealing with human sales teams.
MySpace uses proprietary technology to build a detailed profile of each user and their friends, including age, gender, location and interests. Much of this information is pulled contextually from the profile itself (that’s where the secret sauce is). So, for example, MySpace may have a very good idea that a user is not only a sports fan, but the specific sport the user loves as well as the teams and even players he or she follows closely. There are over 300 subcategories for movie lovers alone.
This is not new. Facebook’s platform allows advertisers to choose the key words for which it seeks to generate clicks and simultaneously gives the advertiser an idea of how many people fit the description of being likely to click on that key word. Facebook’s platform does not require a human sales team. I’d say MySpace has been sluggish. On the other hand, I don’t think Facebook has such detailed categorization of their viewers.
Facebook has attempted something called Social targeting. In simple words, that means placing ads within social contexts. It’s important to note that products and services are consumed primarily within a social context. Authorities in the world of marketing are excited about social targeting because one of the main concerns for any firm is when, how and to whom they should market their products – and evidence from a recent study by Shawndra Hill, a Wharton Business School Professor suggests that social networks may be one way to answer the question of relevance. She says “We provide strong evidence that whether and how well a consumer is linked to existing customers is a powerful characteristic on which to base direct marketing decisions. Our results indicate that a firm can benefit from the use of social networks to predict the likelihood of purchasing.”. The study concludes that consumers linked to a prior customer — adopt a service at a rate three to five times greater than baseline groups.
It is not clear however, if MySpace will use individuals to sell to friends. MySpace seems to be looking at ‘redefining’ the word contextual with respect to Social Networks. I have my doubts with respect to such a platform though. If they data is not constantly generated, then it might not work. Search ad click through rates are declining despite Google’s best efforts at being ‘contextual’. Over time users will just look at ignore these kind of ads. Also, since it is not quite clear if MySpace will keep generating data about consumers of the network (it is also not too clear how often their data generation will take place), the danger is that ads will cease to be contextual. That’s primarily because what users put into their profiles as data ceases to be representative of their personality in no time (at least with the young butterfly like generation).
Facebook’s attempt at Social Targeting has backfired quite a bit. Users were furious with Facebook’s Beacon programme when they came to know that information from 3rd party sites was flowing into their Facebook Newsfeeds. A girl even came to know that her boyfriend was going to propose because she saw that he had bought a ring for her from a 3rd party Facebook affiliate vendor.
MySpace seems to have learnt from Facebook. MySpace will give users the option of whether they want to participate in a targeted advertising system that mines their profile’s information.
The announcement of this platform was made in November last year. The nearly $1 billion Google search deal signed last year is not affected by this product. Google handles search and text ads only; the new MySpace platform is for display ads on profile pages.
Other networks have outperformed Facebook in terms of revenue generation.
HyperTargeting will first be rolled out in the U.S. and then likely to the U.K. No word yet on the date of release.
Incidentally, another route to branding through Social Media is by seeding a buzz within networks and using already existing tools to motivate consumers to buy (and also motivate them to motivate others to buy). One could also look at Official Tie Ups across social media to create dedicated zones for a particular brand. Our sister concern WATConsult specializes in the above mentioned activities.
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