It’s not just Instagram: Facebook plans to change the way all applications are measured. In a post on its developer blog Wednesday, Facebook noted that instead of revealing specific metrics such as apps’ actual monthly active user and daily active user totals, the social network will instead rank apps and place them in tiers.
2012 was a big year for games on Facebook, as hits such as Angry Birds, SongPop, and Dragon City were played by millions of users all over the world. Rebel Entertainment (makers of Dungeon Rampage) put together an infographic showing how social games left their mark last year.
On Black Friday, I posted an update on Facebook with an affiliate link to Amazon’s product page for Razor scooters. Nearly two weeks later, Dec. 6, this update was still showing up in the feeds of friends, only the post had been changed slightly, with a sponsored designation. This is a prime example of Facebook’s domain sponsored stories in action.
As Facebook looks for ways to monetize its presence, the company rolled out Gifts earlier this year — a program that is now available to all U.S. users. But Facebook wasn’t the first, and certainly won’t be the last, to test the social gift market. Several other companies — such as Plumfare, Boomerang, Treater, and GiftHit — use Facebook to deliver experiences that can’t be captured with gift cards.
Ecommerce giant Amazon incorporated Facebook into its new Friends & Family Gifting feature, which allows its customers to tap into the social network, as well as Twitter and Pinterest, for shopping help.
Walmart was the most-talked-about brand on Facebook over Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and it appears that the major retailer has carried that momentum through the holiday season. According to an infographic from Compass Labs, Walmart is again one of the most popular Facebook brands, with the iPhone and Xbox 360 among the biggest tech gifts.
As millions of people opened their wallets last weekend for Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals, brands’ Facebook pages also experienced success. Walmart, which was bombarded on Facebook with criticism for opening at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving, was actually the most successful brand on the social network during the two shopping days, according to Socialbakers. Amazon, Macy’s, and Toys “R” Us also earned kudos for fan growth and engagement.
Facebook had Black Friday fever during the week of Nov. 16 through 23, as the top 25 people talking about this scores went to retailers on Black Friday itself, with gigantic jumps in mentions of Black Friday (1,450 percent), shopping (586 percent), mall (304 percent), and sales (162 percent) during that time period.
It’s hard to believe that Thanksgiving is already here. Perhaps even more difficult to swallow is the subsequent holiday season and its accompanying pressures. With Black Friday starting ridiculously early this year, you better be ready to put down the pie and shop. The thought of trying to buy presents to please everyone is more than exhausting. How will you know what to buy? Consult Facebook.
Data-focused software-as-a-service provider SumAll announced the completion of a $6 million series-A capital-financing round led by Battery Ventures, with Wellington Partners participating, as well.
