An Open Letter to Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg After His Lame ‘Thank You for Being an Advertiser’ Pop-Up
Dear Mark Zuckerberg,
As I opened my Facebook Business page yesterday morning I got a big surprise … a pop-up message from none other than you, thanking me for being one of Facebook's 2 million advertisers. (See the image below.)
To me and other marketers who are talking about this (via social, of course), it's a major — and deeply impersonal — fail.
So Mark, if you'll indulge me, here's why I was so angered and frustrated by your message.
The truth is, I don't want to be one of your 2 million advertisers. I want to reach my hard-won Facebook likes (which I call communities) for free without having to "boost" every post.
I know that Facebook is a public company and needs to provide shareholder value and return on investment (I'm a stockholder, BTW). However, shareholder value at the expense of the your own clients doesn't cut it for most of us.
Think about this Mr. Zuckerberg: I spent a lot of time and money on Facebook to build my audience. For years I put your company's URL and logo on ALL of my marketing materials, from direct mail to my website. While you may not see it this way, I actually helped build Facebook. I certainly drove a ton of traffic its way, for which I didn't charge you, did I?
As a marketer, I've put my best efforts into building not just likes, but deeply engaged communities on Facebook. And when you changed Facebook to a "pay for play" business, I had to pay to build my fan base, and then pay again to get my posts out (i.e., boosted) to the same fans, I accepted it for a while.
But now I have to ask you this: Why the double whammy, Mark? Facebook isn't the IRS, is it? Why do I have to be taxed to build my community, then taxed again to send my community the content they clearly signed up to receive? In other words, why do I have to pay to reach my own fans?
- Categories:
- Social Media Marketing
- People:
- Mark Zuckerberg
Jim Gilbert has had a storied career in direct and digital marketing resulting in a burning desire to tell stories that educate, inform, and inspire marketers to new heights of success.
After years of marketing consulting, Jim decided it was time to “put his money where his mouth was" and build his own e-commerce company, Premo Natural Products, with its flagship product, Premo Guard Bed Bug & Mite Sprays. Premo in its second year is poised to eclipse 100 percent growth.
Jim has been writing for Target Marketing Group since 2006, first on the pages of Catalog Success Magazine, then as the first blogger for its online division. Jim continues to write for Total Retail.
Along the way, Jim has led the Florida Direct Marketing Association as their Marketing Chair and then three-term President, been an Adjunct Professor of Direct and Digital marketing for Miami International University, and created a lecture series, “The 9 Immutable Laws of Social Media Marketing,” which he has presented across the country at conferences and universities.
