Wednesday 16 January 2013

What Facebook Graph Search Might Mean, or 'Last Recommendation in Brooklyn'

Facebook's Graph Search announcement yesterday has many people predicting the decline of other search services and platforms that the humans of Planet Earth would otherwise use for recommendations on what to do with their evening. And with the commentator focus on mining this functionality for guidance concerning, say, 'Mexican restauarants my friends have enjoyed in Brooklyn', I couldn't help wondering: when did the opinions and recommendations of our social circle become so important online?

Hey, I don't know any of these people!

What I mean is, speaking objectively: why should knowing somebody personally elevate their opinion above that of what might be termed an 'expert'? Just because my friend, er, Curly likes Mexican food and used to live in Brooklyn, why does that mean I should trust her experience or recommendation (as handed to me by Facebook Search) more than 450 reviewers on Yelp? Or (just imagine) a Brooklyn-based food critic, whose 50-year newspaper career has been dedicated specifically to the evaluation of local Mexican 'eateries'? Does knowing and (presumably) liking Curly make her recommendation any more valid, or me any more likely to agree with her tastes vis-a-vis carne asada?



I'm not questioning this stuff because I disagree with the concept that the opinions of those close to me matter more than those of people I've never met, or because I dispute that people connect with people over shared tastes. On the contrary: of course I'd rather go to that place my Dad liked, rather than take a punt on a critic's review (although that's a bad example because I'm not sure how much he actually cares for Mexican food.) I'm questioning this stuff because I believe those who make their living in the digital space need to work out just how much our audiences care about where the information that guides and influences them comes from, and I'm obviously talking beyond Mexican restaurants.

Social media is, at its heart, built upon the concept of 'the share'. Brands post and tweet in the understanding that their fans and followers will share that information with their social circle, because that sharing confers a kind of validity to the information and by implication the brand ("Curly liked this, so it must be okay.") If Facebook Search and services like it become an integral part of our online lives, this means that audiences will be saying "my friend's word matters more than your critic's" louder than ever before. For example, theatres: your local drama critic might give your play five stars, your in-house scholar might hammer home the historical significance of the work, and your leading lady might call it the best work she's ever done. But if Curly doesn't enjoy the opening night, I assume I won't either -- and I won't buy.

Obviously this concept has been around for centuries and it's called 'word of mouth.' It's something that social media specialists already capitalize on, if they're doing it right. But it's never been the be-all-and-end-all. Who's to say that technology like Facebook Search won't condition audiences to value social recommendations above most (or even all) other sources? And if that starts to happens, how do brands adapt to that kind of democratization? I'm not scaremongering, honest: just hopeful that people will be realistic about how their social strategies might have to change to honor and recognize what matters most to audiences. Recognizing influencers, encouraging sharing at every step, leveraging even more user-generated content, Tweet Seats -- these are not the solutions. These are just the start.

PS. Please leave your recommendations for Mexican restaurants in Brooklyn in the comments.

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