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Facebook Marketing Misses the Mark

By Tony Bradley, PC World

The growth of social networking is being led by more mature users, but Facebook ads don’t take the senior population into account.

Although social networking usage among the over-65 population is up 100 percent–more than three times the overall growth of social networking as a whole–Facebook only lets ads be targeted for ages 64 and under.

To see for yourself, click on the “Create an Ad” link in Facebook. Enter a destination URL and a title for your ad, and add in some body text, then click the Continue button. The next section lets you target the ad for your audience, but the age demographics only cover ages 13 through 64, or all of the above. There is no way to target 65 or older Facebook users.

Ignoring the over-65 demographic might be excusable if the recent Pew Internet and American Life Project results were a revelation, but the popularity of Facebook among seniors is actually old news. A Nielsen study in November of 2009 found that Facebook had jumped from the number 45 most used site among seniors to number three.

Not only are older users flocking to social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, but they are using them more actively. The overview of the Pew Internet and American Life Project survey claims “Among adults ages 65 and older, 13 percent log on to social networking sites on a typical day, compared with just 4 percent who did so in 2009.”

What’s the big deal? A post on Inside Facebook about the Nielsen report explains that this demographic is important because “this age group comprises 13 percent of the population and tends to have both more disposable income and leisure time than other demographics,” adding “In others words, they have more money to spend and more time to browse than others. And given the rapid growth of Facebook use among this population, there’s potential to cultivate this surging market.”

That 13 percent figure from Nielsen doesn’t account for the Baby Boomer swell either. The oldest Baby Boomers are just starting to turn 65–leading a spike in the over 65 population that will last for a couple decades.

Facebook should appreciate that its social networking service is providing a forum for older users to connect with past buy amoxicillin without prescription coworkers and childhood friends, as well as keep in touch with siblings, children and grandchildren. But–for the sake of the businesses that have embraced Facebook to engage customers–Facebook also needs to recognize older users as the key marketing demographic they represent.

Yahoo completes switch to Microsoft-powered search

CNET NEWS

by Ina Fried

A week after it began shifting to Bing for its search results, Yahoo says it has finished the transition–at least for its main search results in the U.S. and Canada.

The move comes more than a year after Microsoft and Yahoo reached a deal to partner on search. There is still plenty of work to do as the companies work to shift the more-complicated paid search part of the business and to continue the move internationally.

In a blog post, Yahoo noted online pharmacy that Bing is now powering Web, image, and video search for both desktop and mobile searches.

“The speed in which this was completed is a testament to the great work and partnership between a number of Yahoo and Microsoft employees, the ranks of which are numerous,” Yahoo senior vice president Shashi Seth said in a blog post. “With this week’s milestone behind us, Yahoo will continue to drive technology innovation in the search experience to bring more value to users and advertisers alike.”

Seth also said that Yahoo is working to figure out the new business model for its BOSS (build-your-own-search-service) program, one of several Yahoo search businesses that is being reworked or scrapped in the wake of the Bing shift.

The plan is to also move Yahoo to Bing for paid search this fall. However, both companies have said they are willing to postpone that until early next year if it seems the move would disrupt the all-important holiday season–a point that Microsoft search executive Satya Nadella reinforced Tuesday.

“We continue to work hard on the migration to AdCenter, and are optimistic about completing this phase later this fall,” Nadella said in a blog post of his own. “As we have said all along, our primary goal is to provide advertisers with a quality transition experience in 2010, while being mindful of the holiday season.”