Background
Facebook is the world’s largest social networking
website with more than 350 million users. Eleven
per cent of these users are over the age of 35 and
the fastest growing demographic group is users
over 30. Behind the inviting interface and staggering
growth is a team of dedicated advertising sales
professionals whose task is to convince marketers
and advertising agencies that paying to be
on Facebook is a profitable way to use their
media budgets.
Challenge
Attracting marketing dollars is about developing
personal relationships with senior marketers
and advertising media buyers. The ad sales team
believed that their resource of over 350 million
active Facebook users could be marketed as the
world’s largest and most accurate focus group to
online advertisers, something unique to Facebook.
Together with Squillane Studios, Facebook examined
how it could best position its new advertising
insight products for Advertising Week 2009,
an annual event that brings together industry
decision makers for a week of seminars,
discussions and presentations in New York.
Solution
Squillante Studios developed the key messaging
points, designed and produced event materials and
signage that created a powerful circle of credibility
for Facebook, enabling the advertising sales team to
successfully engage its prospective audiences during
the Advertising Week events.
Results
The events and meetings around the launch
of Facebook’s advertising insight products were
a success and helped the advertising sales team
acquire new partnerships that established Facebook
as a viable and relevant social media powerhouse.
At the end of the 2009 financial year, the company
announced that it had attracted $435 million in
revenue and experienced a 45% revenue growth.
In short, Facebook became a free cash flow positive
company, generating enough revenue to cover
yearly operating expenses and capital spending.
