Facebook's Strategic Profile: Growth, Competition & Privacy

Introduction: The Rise of Social Networking in America

Social networking through sites such as MySpace, Friendster, and Facebook became a popular and virally spreading phenomenon in the United States. Avenues such as blogging and tweeting facilitated a form of independent mass communication that allows regular internet users to broadcast both personal and general thoughts to the world. These online contexts for community, group orientation, and networking originated in the U.S. and generated remarkable success and innovative application there.

To some extent, social networking seems to be a direct reflection of celebrity culture in the United States. Tabloid culture, reality television, and celebrity voyeurism suggest an almost obsessive drive to eliminate the boundaries between public and private life. For the common media user, the internet has become a de facto medium through which to act on these instincts, with personal disclosure, self-promotion, and the desire to establish connections with large social cross-sections all playing significantly into the success of social networking and blogging. Such outlets have become extremely popular and effective ways to access one another — to communicate thoughts, ideas, and event invitations; to connect with old friends; to establish new friendships or romances; to voice political views; or to share personal and artistic expression.

However, there are broader sociological effects that have come into sharper focus as these outlets have increasingly permeated popular culture. None has penetrated the popular lexicon and lifestyle of Americans as thoroughly as Facebook, the social networking site that for many has become a de facto forum for personal expression, communication with one's social network, and connection with individuals of common interest. Today, Facebook is relatively unchallenged in its dominance in the field of online social networking, but it also stands as a target for competitors and a point of controversy in the evolving discussion concerning internet privacy. The strategic profile and case analysis offered here are intended to provide organizational insight into the realities ahead for Facebook both as a product and as an organization.

Facebook's Origins and Early Differentiation

Facebook began in 2004 as a free service centered on a university campus community, where its founder desired to make virtual the traditional "facebook" campus directories that had long been used to connect and organize student groups and social circles. According to a 2006 article, Facebook would by then have become "a full-fledged technology business with over 100 employees and 7.5 million users" (Harken, 139). Moreover, it distinguished itself significantly in the American market from other social networking sites by creating a greater level of user control over the development of a personal network and the defining of privacy terms and limitations. Most importantly, its strategic development would focus on a strategy driven by personal rather than commercial or anonymous interfacing.

Harken identifies this as a key difference in the internal strategy of Facebook, distinguishing it from the structures of companies that had preceded it in achieving popularity and mainstream penetration. Harken indicates that "unlike Friendster and MySpace, where divisions between various networks were not explicit, Facebook made its members' school their primary network and offered only limited access beyond that. 'What makes it so much better than Friendster is that it's your peers rather than a random assortment of people'" (Harken, 143). Not only on the point of competition, but also on the point of achieving an internal design for product growth that is more inherently self-perpetuating, Facebook distinguished itself in terms of the speed and sturdiness of its expansion.

For Facebook, this success converged with a high cultural cachet in its chosen product field. The appeal of social networking had never been greater. Initially structured to connect students with specific ties to universities and campus communities, the platform increasingly came to include parents, relatives, and even teachers. At this juncture, Facebook had permeated the general culture and public perceptions in a way that did nothing less than alter the way individuals interface with one another — not just virtually, but socially.

Works Cited

Barnes, S.B. (2006). A privacy paradox: Social networking in the United States. First Monday, 11(9).

Harkey, M. (2006). Case 14: Facebook. University Graduate School of Business.

Miyazaki, A.D., & Fernandez, A. (2000). Internet privacy and security: An examination of online retailer disclosures. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 19(1), 54–61.

Salkever, A. (2009). Will social networks kill Google? A Facebook founder (naturally) says yes. Daily Finance.