5 Lessons to get 1 billion Users
Facebook has just marked another major milestone, achieving one billion users. In anyone’s book, getting a billion users to use your product or service is no mean feat and in fact could well be the only single service on the planet that comes from a single company and has one billion users after the internet itself.
So how did Mark and his company get those one billion users, what lessons can we take from him to attract so many users to our own products or services?
- Set out with a mission.
From the beginning Facebook has stuck to "Facebook's mission is to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected." Do you have a mission that focuses you so everything that you do takes you a step closer to getting there?
- People love it.
Like it or not, it‘s social and addictive. It’s lighthearted entertainment from our friends, relatives and favorite brands. As humans, we like to be entertained, whether it is watching the TV, chatting with friends, or sitting through a presentation, a giggle always feels good.
- Everyone wants one.
It has the ability to be spread very easily via word of mouth and mouse. Just like the Cabbage Patch Dolls, Xbox, the IPhone and more recently Gangnam Style, when something catches on and goes viral like the flu, it’s because our influencers have one or have heard of it and we don’t want to be seen as “behind the times” and without one, and so it becomes commonplace very quickly.
- Monetize it but not the user.
The user does not have to spend a cent to enjoy the service forcing Facebook to make money in different ways. The slogan on their homepage states “It's free and always will be” and it will tough to go against that if they ever do, but they are worth billion of dollars right now. Is it possible for you to make your revenue without charging your user?
- Keep evolving
It moves with the times with new features being added and old ones taken away on a regular basis. The service is constantly evolving along with the user and other technological advances that are going on simultaneously. Are you keeping pace?
Facebook really does do what it says on the can. It’s easy to connect and interact with people locally and across the world at the same time. A very simple idea that has changed the way we communicate with each other on the internet forever.
Does your product or service stack up to what has made Facebook so successful?
Linda Coles is the author of “Learn marketing with social media in 7 days” (Wiley) and is a speaker and trainer on building relationships. She lives in New Zealand on a fig orchard.