2011 6 7 mindshare digital po v global vs. local facebook pages
2013 7 26 mindshare digital pov facebook results
1. Facebook Results Digital Team 26/07/13
Background and Details
Facebook stunned the advertising community this week by announcing that mobile revenues
accounted for 41% of total advertising income for the social giant. Overall revenues reported for Q2
2013 stood at $1.81 billion, an increase of 53%, compared with $1.18 billion in the second quarter
of 2012. Advertising revenue was $1.60 billion, representing 88% of total revenue and a 61%
increase from the same quarter last year.
As well as very healthy business results, which caused stock to surge by a massive 30%, the social
giant also posted some other impressive numbers: During the Q2 period it surpassed 1 million
active advertisers, driven by significant growth in local businesses; Introduced video for Instagram
and saw 5 million videos uploaded in the first 24 hours; The Facebook for Every Phone App has now
passed 100 million monthly active users – stretching the reach of Facebook beyond solely the world
of smartphones and Facebook also launched new products including Verified Pages, hashtags and
embedded posts to help people on Facebook connect with their friends about what's taking place
all over the world.
Facebook founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said: "We've made good progress growing
our community, deepening engagement and delivering strong financial results, especially on
mobile. The work we've done to make mobile the best Facebook experience is showing good results
and provides us with a solid foundation for the future."
Implications
The massive swing in investor confidence – one analyst said that Facebook had literally ‘crushed my
expectations’ - is a real coming of age moment for Facebook. It was only 18 months ago that the
social giant had little or no mobile revenues (or strategy seemingly) and the biggest question
hanging over its head when it went through its IPO in Q2 last year was ‘can Facebook make money
from mobile?’ This week Facebook answered that question, and then some. In typical, ‘nothings
ever finished’ fashion the social giant is now looking for the next big market opportunity, and
Cheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s Chief operating Officer - and if you believe some the future first
Female President of the USA - believes Facebook is already on its way to grabbing it with both hands
suggesting that although ads are only just beginning on the Facebook for Every Phone service, it is
already very appealing to advertisers because “there is not really an easy way to reach people in the
developing world.”
Summary
Facebook has posted some very positive results this quarter, exceeding expectations based on its
tumultuous last three months, especially through its mobile advertising platform. This is a clear
sign that Facebook is starting to understand its role as a conduit between users and brands - from
the slow decision around brand advertising being displayed on inappropriate pages, to the apparent
delays on the video ad platform that's been rumoured for months, it hasn't been an easy three
months. But the results show that Facebook could just be unstoppable now as it makes its play as
the world largest advertising platform.