Since the entry of the internet, every few years, newer social media platforms have surfaced. Of them, one of the most popular is Facebook which was launched on February 4, 2004. Although, Orkut came before it, Facebook surpassed it soon in reach and popularity.
As Facebook turns 16 today, we speak to a few users to know their take on its presence.
The evolving site
In the past 16 years, Facebook has evolved a lot. According to brandwatch.com, as of 2019, there were more than 60 million active business pages and around two billion users. That is a huge number to achieve in 15 years time. Priti Salkade (45), head of operations at Millionlights, tells us what role Facebook has played in her life. She started using Facebook 10 years back. The initial idea was to connect with people and know and share the whereabouts, though its role gradually grew bigger for her when Facebook started adding features for businesses and promotions, helping them to reach the correct audience. “You can share videos, go live, post jobs, chatbots and what not. We have been using many such features to connect and promote our business,” she points out.
Salkade believes that in spite of the presence of many other platforms, Facebook is relevant today if you use the right features and are a part of the right groups. But she agrees, “With so many other options, using only Facebook is not sufficient. It is relevant but not enough. You have to be a pro at every platform if you want to be in business.”
Skilling and educating via Facebook is one of the options that Millionlights uses. “It’s the marketing that lets you target the exact demographics of people you want to reach. So, as far as reach is concerned, Facebook is a good option. It is relevant to a lot of audiences and that’s why WhatsApp and Facebook are the most popular social networks even today in India,” concludes Salkade.
Business grows
Facebook has popularly been used as a platform to increase your friend circle. Over the years though, it has introduced many features for people with diverse interests and professions like artists, gastronomes, entrepreneurs and so on.
Artist and a travel entrepreneur Nilesh Agrawal, 37, began his journey with Facebook 10 years back. “At first, FB was all about connecting with people, finding old friends and making new ones, playing games and sharing your best moments. However, slowly, it became a huge platform for all to market themselves, be it a small or large company or freelance artists. Now it has created opportunities for new and old businesses. It has also changed its user interface making it more convenient and effective,” says the admin of the Pune Photography Club.
“I have created a photography page called ‘Pune Photography Club’ where any photography enthusiast can post their work and seek feedback. Or those who need photography-related services, can ask for it. Till now, there are 21K + members on the page and many have got photography assignments through it, including me. Hence, it is completely relevant even now,” he believes adding that other platforms are nowhere close to Facebook.
Freelancers benefit
As much as Facebook benefits established businesses, it also gives a free hand to small entrepreneurs, encouraging people to follow their passion. Rimli Biswas, 33, a baker by passion, started her official Facebook page in 2015. A keen observer, she says, “Over the years, Facebook has become more crowded, both in good and not so good ways. From a business person’s perspective, I would say that it has given us a huge client base which otherwise would have been very difficult.”
And Facebook gives her a free hand to operate her own page unlike earlier days, when people had to be dependent on software developers. Speaking about the relevance of Facebook in this decade, Biswas says that it is still relevant because it has everything under one roof. “There are certainly other apps or websites where you can do particular things but here you can do multiple stuff. There is everything for everyone; be it a professional, housewife or entrepreneur.”
Facebook, and customers have become a family to her. “I have made my clients my friends and hence, Facebook has become a family to me,” she explains.
The criticism
While most youngsters love Facebook, there are many who don’t think much of it too. Amey Pandit, 24, copywriter, who got introduced to Facebook when he was a teenager, says, “I believe Facebook has lost its uniqueness. When other social media platforms started adding ‘stories’ to their interface, Facebook also did the same. I think that Facebook was more fun earlier. There are too many unnecessary features now.”
With the emergence of so many other platforms to do business and showcase your talent like Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, etc, Pandit believes that the material available on Facebook nowadays is good only for passing your time. “There’s nothing productive that you could achieve through this platform,” says the youngster who feels that Facebook will still enjoy a good run in the Indian market for the next couple of generations.
