Facebook Showcases the Power of Social Media

Today Facebook announced that they would be reverting back to their previous Terms of Use. For those that haven’t heard, Facebook updated their Terms of Use two weeks ago — a change which attracted immediate attention and “feedback” (as Facebook puts it).

So?  What’s the Big Deal?

Many people relate “social media” to marketing, social networks or don’t know what it is at all.  However, it’s something much larger than that.  It’s giving consumers the power to change how businesses make their decisions and it can sometimes force these businesses to focus on their customers and not just on the bottom line.  Social media gives consumers a voice, and a loud one at that.

It was a voice that was heard loud and clear by Facebook — loud enough for them to reverse a legal change in their terms within 14 days.

Social Media Gives Consumers Power

Facebook didn’t make this decision because a few people called their customer service line complaining about it.  No, instead, people like Perez Hilton (who gets millions of visitors a day) posted things like this:

• http://perezhilton.com/2009-02-16-boycott-facebook-heres-why
• http://perezhilton.com/2009-02-17-facebook-still-sucks (a day after his original post, and in response to Facebook’s initial reply)

Not to mention the article on Mashable (a social media news site) with their post on the topic:  http://mashable.com/2009/02/16/facebook-tos-privacy/

And, of course, you have the consumers that will take the time to compare companies to their competitors:  http://amandafrench.net/2009/02/16/facebook-terms-of-service-compared/

Imagine If Consumers Had this Power 10 Years Ago

When the internet was just getting it’s legs, consumers didn’t yet have this voice.  In fact, people were still unsure about buying things online, and Amazon.com and Netflix.com were deemed crazy ideas.  Sure, there were ratings in magazines and top 10 lists, but it wasn’t as unfiltered and blunt as the comments made by consumers today (in both good and bad ways).

What products and companies would have been different, changed, unreleased or quickly taken out of the market if we could speak up like we can now?

…and how will this power change business decisions in the future?  Will it force companies to focus on quality and the interests of their customers more?