Back in 2006, Facebook launched their developer platform, and with the app craze, it looks like Facebook continues to rev up their business with the platform/ application business model. The F8 Conference is on Wednesday, and will be a networking conference for developers and entrepreneurs in the bay area.
A few things they will focus on:
- Growth: how Facebook grew to 400 million users in less than 2 years
- Moving quickly: the techniques for maximizing the performance of Facebook applications and websites
- Industry news and trends: developers discuss the future of mobile, and challenges of cross-platform development
- Social games: the gaming world and the future of Facebook games
But the main question I have been exploring is how Facebook markets applications and retain usership?
- Facebook has developed three ways of marketing their applications. The first is through joining the app and then sending an invitation to friends. Although Facebook has limited this to 10 people (it used to be 100), it is still an effective marketing tool that spreads an app's success virally.
- The second is through the mini-feed or news feed. As users play the game and reach higher levels, their success is posted on this feed - a great way to remind people of successful applications.
- The third way is through the badges on a person's profile. Upon seeing this badge on a friend's profile, you can click the application and add it to your profile too. Even with these tools, many applications do not get substantial visibility.
Facebook’s application development platform is one way to promote the long-term success of good applications.
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