Social Networking - A New Trend?

How does this effect online advertising?

[wfernley]

This is just a question I though up. There has been more and more hype about social networking as the new trend replacing search and I don't quite believe it to be true as of yet.

I was curious how would social netowrking effect online advertising. If people only listened to others in forums, blogs and various other social mediums, would advertisements still have a place?

Just a thought anyways :) I am by no means an expert on this new trend.

Cheers!

Wes

[OnLineSince1997]

If you look at some of the big social networks sites like like MYSpace, Friendster, Tribe, and others..most all of them have some sort of advertising going on within their network...

[Quadrille]

This is just a question I thought up. There has been more and more hype about social networking as the new trend replacing search and I don't quite believe it to be true as of yet.

Replacing search?

I don't think so - different worlds!

Social networks all seem to use adsense or its equivalents - but I'd be very surprised if they get a decent clickthru; if people are 'socializing', I'd have thought they are much less lkely to provde the context for appropriate ads to be generated - and much less likely to click than someone who is, say, searching around for a 37 inch television.

But I don't know ... does anyone?

And do people think it's a fad, or will social netwroking really replace my invisible friend?

Interesting that for some, the web is replacing real friends ... now that is a worry.

[Catalyst]

Well I don't think it will replace search at all - but it extends into new and additional advertising opportunites we didn't have before. Not just talking about the advertising provided by the venue itself, but the potential free advertising and branding that comes from word of mouth. That is, if you have a good rep and a product that's buzz worthy.

Linda

[edited by: Catalyst at 9:23 pm (utc) on Nov. 5, 2006]