Just looking at Facebook

[moonwitch]

Aw come on! I never said that!
Facebook is not a selling site!
But as a social networking site it can be a very dodgy place. Once you post on there anyone in the world can access that info if they are determined enough.
SOOOOOOoooooooooooooooo spooky and dangerous.
BTW I aint on it!

I didn't say Facebook is a selling site....both Facebook and auction sites are full of strangers that we probably have nowt in common with and wouldn't meet up with them in the real world.

People post all sorts of dodgy things on these forums and then the posts get picked up by google for anyone to read...so there isn't a great deal of difference in the safety rules we need to be aware of.

I have to say though...nobody on here has thrown a snowball at me recently, nor sent me a well worn teddy bear (maybe Meebo might send me one)

[hotandvintage]

Facebook may be selling soon, as there was an article recently saying it was going to sell person to person, I suppose now ebay dropped the ball everyone wants to grab it.

I understand that we can post our products, as I have a social media option on firefox that allows me to share with most of them, it was more the working of these sites
And as to the information giving, it is possibly easier for someone to get more information through an auction site than it is on the facebook site, from what I have seen, as you have to allow access to the information from a persons request. But when selling on an auction, all they have to do is hit the buy button and they have your info.

My question is more the working of the sites in question, and the users that use it.
I was totally thrown by the number of my family that use facebook, although I sort of expected it from the younger ones, the older ones however I was not expecting. I am struggling to see what they got from it.
I understand those that wish to play games in a community setting, as they can request help when ever they get stuck.
I also sort of understand the connection to family members that are away from home, or when your family is like mine and spread all over the world, and seems to have settled into small packs that I suppose Facebook is breaking down, as we all somehow come together through these friend links if not fully then partially.

I suppose my struggle to understand it is due to my own reluctance to be so open, I am reading other peoples messages, which discuss everything from the mundane to what they may assume is an important event, and I am just struggling to see where I would fit into that.

The way I look at it is if I don't find a way to fit into it, then how do I use it? Hence the reason I am asking others how they use it, and what is the best ways to use it?

Games obviously seem to be the best option to build your friend list, but is there a way to find out the age range and specifics of who is doing what on there, what games are being used by who?
I would also like to know what the games are, as I clicked on one game and it just said play the game, rather than letting me know what the game was about?

Moonwhitch suggests they have 700 people as friends through playing games, but is there a way to find out the demographics of the people playing the games, as you may have seven hundred people that hate charity with a passion, (a very silly example but I assume you get my point.)

What about those people that do not play games, or wish to use the other P2P sites, how is it best for those to build up their standing and offer both their own products and those of the rest of us on ebid?

[moonwitch]

I have used the marketplace on Facebook over a year ago now, but will have to look at it again to see what changes have been made.

So far as demographics go...it's a bit hit and miss. Facebook suggests friends that have added similar interests to mine...I will add 'charity' and 'charities' to mine and see if the suggestions bring up people who are interested in my YDC links.

I can't really think offhand how else I would find out the way my Facebook friends use facebook....but when I find a way, I will definitely pass that info on.

I know that Facebook use the info we have on our profiles to display targeted ads, so I am guessing that's how the friend suggestions work too.

I only chose Farmville as my main game as it is the most popular with millions of players.....a sort of 'scattergun' approach, if you like. I have dropped some lesser played games as I didn't want to spend too much time on them that could have been spent on adding links and sharing them.

I have a couple of accounts on Facebook for different things and am going to set up a page when I can work out how to add a business logo (I haven't got one that fits the space on the page)....I can then add links to my websites as well as my stores here when I have any.

Just off to add some more stuff to my facebook profile...thanks for the ideas...will definitely be using them

[sweetwheatz]

I have seen many " Fans of " groups on ebay. How does on start those? Why not start a fans of Ebid.

[bykimbo]

I have seen many " Fans of " groups on ebay. How does on start those? Why not start a fans of Ebid.

Put "ebid" in the facebook search and you'll see the groups that already exist that some of us have joined. They don't seem terribly active though. Of course, if you join a group about ebid you're probably already converted, it's them other folks we need to catch.

[bykimbo]

To anybody who thinks facebook is full of people posting surprisingly detailed personal information, and playing games... you just described the ebid forums. There were three pages of new posts here this morning - the second page was almost entirely updates on forum games. Of the rest several were people talking about their private lives, health, family, religious views etc. You don't have to do any of these things here, and you don't have to do them on facebook either. But if you want to, you can.

[hotandvintage]

Things seem to be changing on face book

http://blog.ogilvypr.com/2009/04/foc...ends-series-1/

Both sides of the water

http://givinginadigitalworld.org/200...k-fundraisers/

For those that do not like links they are on about the rise in 55+ now using facebook

You may have read the headlines recently that women 55+ are the fastest growing demographic on Facebook. In fact, according to the demographic data aggregated at AllFacebook.com, there was 142 percent growth in this age group between February and April 2009. This is a powerful statistic which changes the way we have to think about the “average” Facebook user.

Facebook campaigns can still target and engage some of these newer demographics, it just takes a different strategic approach and an understanding of how your target audience is using Facebook. In this CNN article they interview several older Facebook users who use the site frequently to share and keep in touch with family and friends; it is not the social hub of their universe like it might be for a college student.

[hotandvintage]

These games they play on there, would it be possible to make an ebid treasure hunt game that interlinks with the site?

Sorry never used them yet, so do not know if that is a stupid idea.

[bykimbo]

These games they play on there, would it be possible to make an ebid treasure hunt game that interlinks with the site?

Sorry never used them yet, so do not know if that is a stupid idea.

You'd need a programmer willing to put it together, and without an eBid API I think anything it could do my be a bit clunky. It's not a stupid idea at all, but I think it's probably unworkable at the moment.

[astral276]

The saddest thing about Facebook is that some people claim it is their life.