Contrast this, “Now we’re taking a step back and trying to figure out what to do next at Brazen. We have a million ideas. In fact, our tiny development team could probably spend the next two years building the ideas we’ve already thrown around. But we want to make sure that the next thing we do really benefits the community. So we’re asking for feedback from Brazen Careerist members, readers or potential members who are just waiting for us to do something really cool before they join.”, from Ryan Healy at Brazen Careerist.
With this, from Mark Zuckerberg at Facebook, in the face of quite a bit of dissatisfaction from the current community about the recent redesign, “A tipster tells us that Zuckerberg sent an email to Facebook staff reacting to criticism of the changes: “He said something like ‘the most disruptive companies don’t listen to their customers.’” Another tipster who has seen the email says Zuckerberg implied that companies were “stupid” for “listening to their customers.” The anti-customer diktat has many Facebook employees up in arms, we hear.”
Here’s the link to the Valleywag post Even Facebook Employees Hate the Redesign. And please take note of the “tipster” status of that post. We can’t be certain, yet, that the tipster was right. We do know that the Brazen Careerist post is “straight from the horse’s mouth” though, so to speak.
So, let’s just suppose for a moment that Zuckerberg really did say those things. If so, would you say that he has perhaps lost sight of the 3 C’s. Content (community supplied – that’s us). Conversation (community supplied – that’s us too). Community (sensing a pattern here?). I’d say that he has.
In fact, I might even go so far as to say that he’s behaving more like old media than social media. From everythig I’ve read, Facebook did not solicit feedback on this design in the way that Brazen Careerist is attempting to do. Isn’t that conversation with your community one of the cornerstones of today’s social media business? And isn’t that kind of how we see Facebook?
In any case, had they done so, I suspect that they might have made a very different decision than the one they did. But clearly “Twitter Envy” or maybe the back room conversation after they couldn’t buy Twitter that might have gone along the lines of “We’ll show them. We’ll steal the ‘stream’ and tell everyone that we’re really just getting that it’s all about the ‘stream’ and we’re all about supporting it”. Assuming that the redesign is about Twitter, it would be interesting to see the figures on Twitter’s growth or lack thereof thinking that Facebook could steal some of that away.
Or maybe the whole thing’s got something to do with something altogether different. Doesn’t matter really though does it? What matters is that “we don’t” if what Zuckerberg said was true. He’s sponsoring a one way conversation with the very people that put him on the map.
And I’m betting that just isn’t going to work. All of this opens up conversations about about scaling a social media business as it relates to your community. I’ll leave that for another post. What do you think? If the “tipster” is right, has Zuckerberg dug himself a hole he can’t get out of? He’s come through twice before. Can he do it again?
Update: Well, Scoble thinks that Zuckerberg is a genius and about to enter the 5th of 7 phases for the business. Here’s the link: Why Facebook has never listened and why it definitely won’t start now. It’s an interesting take on the matter. Robert knows Zuckerberg and he’s probably spot on with his post.
Interestingly though, he started the post with a reference to his old boss. That boss is someone I’ve always liked and admired. And we used to do a lot of business with that boss and his company. I don’t remember ever trying to run their business but I can see where suggestions that were made about the magazines or the shows or the online properties could be construed as such.
My point about all of that is this. We stopped doing business with them because we felt that they weren’t listening and that they could care less about us. A lot of other people stopped doing business with them too. That business isn’t around anymore.
Like your wife Robert, mine hates the redesign too, and that hasn’t slowed her down any either. And I wouldn’t mind pulling out my iPhone and having the Facebook app that’s on it recommend something close that my friends have liked as well. (And you are probably one of the few people I know who likes to be marketed to more than me.) But you know what Robert, customers have a knack for remembering these sorts of remarks that Zuckerberg made. And they have a way of coming back and biting you on the butt at the most inopportune time. Maybe not before the billions and trillions start rolling in though, eh?
Another Update: Well, after reading both of these, I haven’t changed my mind about Zuckerberg’s comment being just totally wrong but I will say they offer very strong arguments for Facebook over Twitter in the data gold mine race. Both are good reads.
Sorry Twitter, Facebook Is the Data Gold Mine
Why Rob Diana is right: Twitter gets the hype while Facebook will get the gold
(Photo Credit pastemagazine.com)
