Facebook should build on micropayments
With the big Facebook IPO behind us, which could be frustration for small investors, but was a perfect hit for pre-IPO investors. I did not invest, because with the current revenue models, I think Facebook is heavily overrated. But there is huge potential and I did some thinking the last couple of days, on what would be the best business model.
I already tried some facebook advertising my own and it was expensive and totally not successful. And I can tell you why: There are too many shady advertisers on facebook, which ruin the overall trust. And big brands can have exposure there whithout placing ads. So that will always be one revenue source, but Facebook doesn’t have users which search for information like Google.
I think given the widespread use of the Facebook Like Button, Facebook could establish a web-wide micropayment system. They already earn around 30% of their revenue with facebook credits. Advantage to Paypal would be, that I can pay together with friends, easily transfer funds to friends and that I am logged into Facebook anyway.
Brands could book coupons to facebook accounts for special promotions etc..
Hi Jay, good idea with the micropayments. Flattr (where I work) does pretty much exactly that – it’s a Like button with money on top. We don’t have the network effect of Facebook yet, but it’s strongly growing platform for content producers to introduce additional revenue source.