What Tumblr Expects of Its Users

Tumblr has now emerged as a highly effective platform that is allowing businesses to win new followers by showcasing their products and services to them.

SynapseIndia feels incumbent upon itself to apprise its readers of the benefits that Tumblr as a social media platform offers to different businesses, which have now found a new tool to pursue online marketing more persistently. Every social networking site requires its users to follow a given set of techniques and Tumblr is no different. If you are really keen to know what your approach should be, you could follow the guidelines written below. It is possible that as you  put the techniques discussed by us into practice, your may efforts may start to bear fruit and your active presence on Tumblr could become a really fruitful exercise.

SynapseIndia will now give a gist of what is expected of a user who has just taken to Tumblr:

1. Make Your Content Interesting

Although this instruction need not be reiterated as it is more of a requisite, you have to ensure that your content is interesting. It is a given that the more interesting your posts are, the greater will be the likelihood that people will read and reblog them. On taking note of the posts that their followers reblog, an account holder on Tumblr can come to know of the kind of content that they need to share with others. Once a user has got a hang of what their followers want, they could try to create interesting content that is quickly approved by their community.

It is advisable to keep a post short and sweet and add a picture to it if possible. Very few visitors prefer to read a long post in its entirety. If you really feel the need to write a long post, you can do so by breaking your entire write-up into short paragraphs. A user will be in the wrong if they simply transfer their content on Twitter and Facebook to their account on Tumblr.

2. Interact actively

Currently, Tumblr serves as one of the best platforms for businesses to interact regularly with their clients. A business on this social networking site can easily be approached by other users who could ask just about any kind of question that they want. What's more, a business can be anonymous in answering the questions of its followers. When a question is answered publicly, every follower will be able to see it and pitch in with their comments if need be.

A business that answers its questions anonymously is likely to receive criticism as well. However, instead of feeling down on being criticized, a company could actually benefit from criticism by  viewing it as an opportunity to introspect and resolve the issues that its followers have talked about.

3. Practice Reblogging

A hallmark of an active user on Tumblr is that they will partake in reblogging. On reblogging the content of its followers, a business shows that it values their opinion

On taking our recommendations into consideration and following them earnestly, a user on Tumblr could start tapping into the opportunities that the social platform provides them with.

SynapseIndia @ Google+

Brand Marketing Succeeds in Retaining Its Significance

So, you have often heard of brand marketing but you do not know what it exactly is. Brand marketing is nothing but a strategy or a set of strategies whose successful implementation allows an organization to extract greater accountability and loyalty from its customers. The success or failure of its strategies provides a business with the opportunity to introspect and think of how it can improve the quality of its products and services.  

SynapseIndia would like to enlighten its readers further on brand marketing whose significance amongst different companies has not diminished one bit. When new techniques are introduced, they may create a stir but the tried and tested will remain as important as ever. Brand marketing makes for one of the basics of digital marketing that has remained the same. Earlier, it was by working on brand awareness that a company showed its concern toward marketing. A lot of companies are advised that they focus on direct metrics and conversions and the rationale they are given is that they will be able to identify who they are dealing with.

SynapseIndia, however, is of the view that an organization that focuses on metrics concerning sales must not for once think that it does not need a strong image. One reason why brand promotion has become more important than ever before is because of the two words that comprise digital marketing, the one following the other is of greater significance.

A Different Ballgame Altogether

Earlier, B2B companies did not have to pursue marketing persistently. They would only have had to think of adding something interesting to their brochure. If a business was small, it would have had fewer decisions to mull over. Showing a half or a full page ad in the Yellow Book would have sufficed. Digital marketing, however, is a completely different ballgame altogether as it gives an organization the opportunity to reach out to the smallest of groups. So, any organization that has taken its operations online will consider it mandatory to work toward enhancing its image.

Digital branding allows a company to reflect what sort of entity it really is. As a company launches its own website, issues newsletters, establishes a social media presence and uses other tactics, its brand becomes more important than ever before. Another interesting aspect of digital marketing is that it prompts an organization to willy-nilly compete with other companies that are  situated in other remote locations.

When Seeking Expert Assistance Becomes Imperative

We have now entered the digital age and all businesses today are likely to face some big questions, which may eventually require them to seek professional assistance. Expert help matters as it can allow a struggling company to cope with challenges and revitalize its brand. The world is changing fast and it will almost be criminal on the part of a company if it continues following an old technique, which has failed to make any difference. Once a business has kick-started its operations, it creates an image for itself very fast. However, when a company feels that its brand is accruing little benefit to it, it must take some corrective action.

SynapseIndia @ Pinterest

Ads on Facebook To Offer 22% More ROI

Here is an interesting piece of news that is sure to please online marketers to no end – As you display ads over Facebook, your ROI is likely to increase by 22%. This is not just an assumption but a fact that was shared by Brad Smallwood, Facebook's head of measurement and insights, at the Advertising Research Foundation's conference in New York. Mr. Smallwood said that his company had increased the return on investment on 22 recent campaigns comprising data from 70 million users by 22%. The official shared figures and news from his company's own database as well as that of Datalogix, which keeps a tab on the conversions from Facebook ads.

While Facebook itself has enough data that allows it to come to grips with the purchasing habits of its users, Datalogix, a company that specializes in digital media and integrated database marketing, too endeavors to increase online and offline sales through the purchasing information that it has access to.

Mr. Smallwood further added that Facebook would now help different brands to tailor their advertising campaigns as per the behavior of their buyers, from casual to hardcore. Here is what he said:

"As we dig further and further into the data, we’re able to get a segment-level understanding of what’s working — so understanding for heavy product purchasers that you should have a different frequency (of advertising messages for) the low product purchasers."

Small Businesses Likely To Benefit From New Strategy

So, now that you know what Facebook is up to, you should not for once think that your account on the social networking site will be taken advantage of. Facebook will not be identifying any name to different corporations. Instead, it will simply connect its data with that of Datalogix in a 'double-blind' method.

An official from Facebook itself has claimed that the ads on networking site will now offer 22% more ROI than before. So, SynapseIndia believes that it will be interesting to see how small business owners react to this latest bit of information. As advertisers are provided with the data pertaining to purchasers, they could start targeting buyers who are likely to bring them the maximum amount of profit. The data provided by Facebook could also let an organization know of the customers that its competitors are catering to.

It has been discovered that 50% of the TV commercials and digital ads fail to come to the notice of their target audience. SynapseIndia is of the view that with the initiative taken by Facebook, it is possible that at least the statistics concerning digital ads could show an improvement.

What Marketers Need To Do

There are several factors that marketers who are keen on realizing their online goals need to take cognizance of. To begin with, a business must know when and how people are purchasing its products. In addition to this, an organization must also try to learn what else its customers are buying and who its competitors are. As marketers combine their findings with the new advertising strategy, it is possible that they could achieve stronger results.   

SynapseIndia @ Foursquare

Your Facebook Like Speaks Aloud About You

SynapseIndia has been aggressively tracking the recent studies at the University of Cambridge about the `like` feature on Facebook that can reveal a lot about the end user. One can know more about the personality of an individual, their sexual orientation, IQ level, religious beliefs, and several other traits by studying through their likes and dislikes. "This study demonstrates the degree to which relatively basic digital records of human behavior can be used to automatically and accurately estimate a wide range of personal attributes that people would typically assume to be private," researchers said in the study, which was published today in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

If you tend to like something and have posted a comment on the same, the recorded data can be calibrated by machines in such a manner that it can reveal several traits with utmost accuracy. Several predictors can also speak of whether the parents of the user were divorced when young or whether they hadn't.  Every result provided is first corroborated with the information that is provided on the profiles of each user. "Each person, on average, liked 170 things," says psychologist Michal Kosinski, the study's lead author. "Some liked only one thing and there were people who liked thousands of things. We removed those. We looked at people who liked between one and 700 different things."

The precision of this study has be confirmed at SynapseIndia through the results that were provided. According to which they were able to correctly classify 95% users on the basis of ethnic origin and gender. Similarly 93% of the users were correctly classified as males and females. Even sexual orientation was easy to determine, with 88% of males and 75% of females being judged correctly. "This is not unique to Facebook and is not even unique to social networking in general," says David Jacobs, consumer privacy counsel for the Electronic Privacy Information Center, a public interest research center in Washington. "It's one of the implications of Big Data and in this case Big Data in a social networking context. Lots of information makes for certain inferences and sensitive predictions."

SynapseIndia @ Google+

Redefining The Job Of A Social Media Strategist At Synapse Communication

 By Now, it is crystal clear that the platform for social media interaction by organizations including businesses, is here to stay. As per surveys, more than 70% of establishments have started to utilize  considerable aspects of social media, initiating a new age in the relationship between consumers and businesses. At the same time, we must not also forget that social media, though very powerful, is just another tool and never a strategy.

The true challenge faced by most social media experts is the integration of such platforms with other mediums and without a communication strategy, we can never expect a miracle. After all, a tool with no plans is similar to a road trip without a map. It will lead us nowhere, and we must ensure that in order to steer an organization in the desired direction, there must always be a social media strategist to enhance better communication skills. And, the qualities that this person must possess are:

• Should be able to influence and not act like an authority.
• Must always be passionate about the brand.
• Is always be eager to learn more.

Having said that, there is always some amount of counseling required  for a newly hired social media strategist.  At SynapseIndia, a renowned web solutions firm, every new employee in this field is always provided with an outline of the duties. There is also a social media policy in place, so that they are aware of the language that is to be practiced. Periodic feedbacks are provided to keep a track on their activities, and to confirm that they are not just broadcasting but also engaging with the users. The primary responsibilities of a social media strategist at SynapseIndia include:

• Development and implementation of social media strategies.
• Discovering online target audience for the brand.
• Engaging with individuals and communities to build a closely integrated community.
• Analyzing the market competitiveness.
• Administering brand citations, including answering inquiries, providing customer support, and dispelling any form of brand myths.
• Tracking monthly alterations in social media statistics and creating strategies accordingly.

A skilled social media strategist is someone who can co-ordinate with the different departments of an organization and tactfully integrate them all.

SynapseIndia @ Twitter

Is There Really A Co-Relation Between Ad Words and Organic Rankings?

Can an organization improve its search engine rankings by buying Google AdWords? Does Google penalize websites that do not buy its ads by lowering their rankings? The answer to both these questions is – 'No'. This has been the case all throughout and in the future too, buying Google AdWords shall not have a bearing on one's SEO rankings because if it does, the organic rankings of  Google will start to lose their relevance. When this happens, it will be a big blow for Google as  Yahoo or Bing could usurp its position as the leading search engine over the Internet.

Many online users refrain from clicking on PPC ads while doing a search as they are aware that the links may not lead them to what they are actually looking for. A PPC ad can make a skeptic user feel that the advertiser, who is ready to pay more than others, is using a ploy to grab user attention. Recently, a WSI blog post offered a very plausible explanation. It clearly said that doing AdWords did not affect SEO rankings. The blog talked about Google's business ethics and the consequences that the company would face if it started to give co-relate search engine rankings with PPC. Thereby, experts from SynapseIndia want to make it more evident once again that Google itself has said time and again that it will not affect rankings, the blog said.

The blogger revealed that he had been managing PPC campaigns and doing search engine optimization for his clients for years. He had dealt with all types of clients; both those who had started as well as those who had stopped doing paid advertisements, the blogger added and he was convinced that he had never seen anything that indicated that it affected rankings. The blogger further said that there were many SEO firms that had studied the issue and that all of them had arrived at the same conclusion that AdWords did not affect rankings.

SynapseIndia, a software development company based in India that offers SEO services to its clients, is completely in agreement with the WSI blog post. The company acknowledges the importance of paid advertising and believes that high search engine and PPC results are valuable for an organization. However, we too are of the opinion that there exists no co-relation between paid and organic results. The former in no way has any kind of impact on the latter.

However, the assessment done thus far does not imply that AdWords are not important. AdWords, today, play a major role in improving the visibility of a website. Someone who is planning to launch a new website or has launched one only recently can make use of it to popularize their site amongst the vast online audience. When the rankings of a website drop on account of the intense competition over the Internet, PPC can once again regenerate the required amount of traffic.     

SynapseIndia @ Google+

Brighten Your SEO Prospects by Following the Right Procedures

It is always a challenging task for an organization to draw the attention of online users. The task becomes tougher as leading search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing make algorithmic changes on a regular basis. On following the right SEO procedures that do not need to be changed drastically in times of crisis, an organization can keep its online campaign on the right track. SynapseIndia would now like to apprise its readers of some key guidelines pertaining to search engine optimization. Readers are, hereby, informed that along with other things, SynapseIndia Services comprise SEO support too.

The following SEO tips shall come in handy in achieving online success:

1. Think From Users' Point of View

It is advisable for an organization to be mindful of its target audience while formulating its keyword strategy. There is no harm in preparing keywords that comprise solutions to a specific problem. While formulating such keywords, you normally begin with 'how to' or 'what to'. A problem-oriented keyword is likely to yield better results than a generic one.

2. 'Content is King' – Cliche But True       

An organization that is keen on improving its search engine ranking must first improve the quality of its content. This is the rule of thumb that precedes all other SEO techniques.

It takes as much effort to maintain one's search engine ranking as it does to acquire it. An organization that updates its online content on a regular basis shall have visitors thronging its website. The search engine that the website is appearing on too will acknowledge the effort of the site owners and see them as a valuable resource.

It is important to know that search engines are unable to read animations and images. Their appetite is satiated with informative material. Therefore, an organization must submit those web pages to search engines that talk about its products and services.

3. Position Your Links Strategically

In order to invite online users to your web pages, you must position your links strategically on other important websites. Search engines see links leading to your web pages as 'votes' and the more votes you have, the stronger your prospects will be.

4. Know the Art of Keyword Incorporation

Keywords do not just feature in the body of a content. They appear in innumerable places like  links, headings, images descriptions and titles, meta tags etc.

5. Keep a Tab on the Statistics

It is important for site owners to have full knowledge of the statistics concerning their website. There will always be web pages that are visited more than others. Similarly, of the different websites consisting of links to a given web page, one or two will always generate more traffic than the rest. Heeding these facts is important as they help in consolidating a hard-earned position.

6. Make Your Website Interactive

In order to up the inflow of traffic and thereby draw the attention of search engines, an organization can add interactive features to its website in the form of forums, blogs, polls etc.

As the aforementioned tips are followed carefully over a period of time, they will start to yield the desired results.

SynapseIndia @ Slideshare

Internet Surfing on Mobile Devices Gaining Momentum

The Internet is no longer synonymous with PCs. The desktops and laptops of today are being given a good run for their money by smartphones and tablets. SynapseIndia took cognizance of the latest search trends is hereby sharing its observations with its readers. In the United States, desktop media may still be twice as powerful as the one involving mobile phones but the scenario is changing. Compared to desktops, users are spending 14 times more time on mobile media. If the current scenario continues for the next two years, the two will probably be at par with each other. Time, however, is not the only criterion to perceive this change. There are other indicators too, which point at the upturn in mobile media.

Smartphones/Tablets vs Desktops

Source: emarketer.com

Today, smartphones and tablets are contributing significantly to the generation of Internet traffic. The results of a recent survey showed that mobile devices accounted for 10.3% of the global Internet traffic in October 2012. This was the first time that the contribution from mobile devices had exceeded 10%. In fact, on considering the data pertaining to apps, one may find that hand-held devices may have made further inroads. The people of the United States are smitten with smartphones and tablets that have together been instrumental in creating nearly one-third of the total web traffic. The result of a survey showed that as of June 2012, 7.1% traffic in North America originated from tablets whereas 20.3% owed its genesis to smartphones. Desktops, however, continued to reign supreme with a lion's share of 71.5%.

Internet Surfing Finds New Platfrom

The prerogative of desktops with regard to viewing websites was challenged by mobile devices. Experts from SynapseIndia believe that the year gone by has witnessed numerous discussions on extending the web experience on mobile devices and the clamor is likely to become louder in 2013. Today, websites that have not been optimized for smartphones are likely to be left behind by their competitors, which are fine-tuned for the new requirement.

As time passes by, consumers are likely to become more demanding than before. Mobile-based and responsive websites aside, consumers today are requesting brands that they create apps for the leading mobile platforms. Here are some plausible reasons why mobile-based websites are likely to become the future:

• Currently, more than 700 million users are surfing the Net through their mobile phone.
• Internet surfing via mobile phones is now becoming the order of the day. As different brands tap into this new phenomenon, they will grow faster.
• The easy accessibility of the Internet on mobile phones has had a bearing on consumer behavior. Today, a consumer is likely to do a research on their handset in order to inquire about a product before they finally decide to purchase it.
• The stupendous success of e-commerce has now given rise to m-commerce, which stands for mobile commerce. As the exponents of m-commerce create a mobile-friendly site, they can offer several benefits to mobile users in the form of price comparisons, product reviews, discounts, promotions etc.        

The trend is picking up and it is possible that soon every company will feel incumbent upon itself to optimize its website for mobile users.          

SynapseIndia @ Foursquare

When Generating Leads Seems Like Gathering Collectibles

Your leads may seem like collectibles when you start spending extensively on your lead generation strategy. Some may find this analogy quite bizarre. After all, how can leads be compared to stamps or figurines? The truth, however, is that a similarity does exist. A company expending its funds on lead generation could be compared to a collector of art who is often required to choose from different options and make sizable payments off and on. In order to get the best out of any situation, exercising moderation holds the key. A habit, when not reined in, could easily turn into a vice. On keeping a tight rein on its lead generation policy, a company can prevent itself from spending excessively.

So, now that you have become cognizant of the similarity between generating leads and gathering collectibles, know of the tricks and pitfalls too that a collector has to be mindful of. A hobby remains enjoyable and fulfilling as long as discretion is exercised. On not being selective, one can start to feel disillusioned later on. Your resources are very dear to you. Spend them in such a way that you never fail to get a bang for your buck. The following guidelines issued by SynapseIndia could very well serve as a checklist for any organization that is keen on tending to more clients over the Internet:

(a) No dearth of collectibles – If you are really an avid collector, there will always be something that will catch your fancy. Once you are through with collecting stamps, you may develop a liking for coins. Nothing beats the collection of books whose supply will always remain inexhaustible. You may take your cue from here and tell yourself that there will never be a shortage of leads. This assertion becomes stronger on considering that the Internet brings the entire world to your feet.

(b) Random selection – A hobby must always have an element of randomness attached to it. Some of the best choices are often made randomly. It often happens that a collector spots an item that strikes their fancy and they are unable to prevent themselves from buying it. An organization may have clear-cut strategies but if it randomly comes across a lead that could give its sales a strong boost, the opportunity shall not be allowed to go waste. Such kind of opportunities come your way when your vigilant at all times.

(c) That which is rare – The moment something becomes rare, its value and demand witness  an unprecedented rise. When the bidders are too many in number, there can be an auction. A collector's fascination with a classic movie or a book that has gone out of print can prompt them into paying a hefty amount for what will become their prized possession. Don't you think that lead generation is devoid of the rarity factor. Every now and then, an organization may come across a unique opportunity to do business with a client, which if not availed of successfully, may fail to come back again.

"SynapseIndia" believes that lead generation, like collection of valuable things, is an art and as you learn its tricks, you start to become adept in it.                     

Wise Up to the Latest Mobile Trends

The year is 2013 and if as an organization, you have still not formulated your mobile strategies, it is high time you did the needful. Enterprises can be a bit sluggish in their approach but the cliche 'better late than never' seems more relevant now than ever before. It is important for marketers to know of the existing trends and the corresponding action that each demands from them. The companies of today are required to formulate a multi-year strategy that can push them forward in the future. The need of the hour really is to invest resources in the form of time, money and people in mobile.

Img Source: http://readwrite.com

New Requirement, New Responsibility

Mobile marketing has gained so much significance that is likely to have an entire team with different designations working dedicatedly for it. A renowned research firm opined that the "role of mobile marketing manager will emerge." The corporate world is now assigning some hitherto unheard-of designations to a section of its workforce. A few years back, one seldom heard about  the "VP of Mobile". An organization today already consists of different departments and to set up one more could become a hassle. The truth, however, is that mobile as a resource demands time and attention if it is to fuel organizational growth.

"Mobile on the cheap is over. Implementing the complex technology to make the most of mobile opportunities requires a new vision of how to interact with customers, significant changes in culture and competencies across business and IT, and more investment," said a research firm analyst.

Latest Trends – Corresponding Action

We are currently living in an era, which is characterized by a growing usage of smartphones and tablets. By formulating smart policies and restructuring its set-up, an organization can try to avail itself of the new opportunities. SynapseIndia will now shed light on some of the latest trends that demand resourcefulness from marketers:

• As the new form of marketing requires formal processes and governance, marketers will be required to create a separate governance group.
• The role of mobile marketing manager shall be assigned to a senior executive who can shoulder the responsibility dutifully.
• The need for a dynamic team must be addressed with due adherence to the long-term strategy.
• In order to bring about a total change in their marketing approach, marketers can include a range of variables in their strategies.
• As the significance of tablets is catching up with that of smartphones, marketers will have to pay heed to both the devices when they devise their strategies.
• Desktop operating systems are one thing, smartphone platforms are another. Marketers need to be mindful of this.
• Roping in the services of IT professionals is advisable as expenses are likely to increase when new mobile services are enabled.
• Smartphones will surely come in handy in reaching out to the consumers of the markets that are going to emerge in the future. Consequently, marketers must always think of achieving more.                

On putting the aforementioned suggestions into practice, an organization can expect its campaign to start shaping up.

SynapseIndia @ Pinterest

Online Users Abandoning Shopping Carts Frequently

 SynapseIndia @ SheWrites

Many will agree that all those who transfer different items to a shopping cart do not necessarily buy all of them. According to a recent study and its results from a renowned survey group shed light on this aspect of consumer behavior that leaves sellers ruing a missed opportunity. The respondents of the survey consisted of online buyers from the United States who were asked why they abandoned online shopping carts midway. There were different explanations and all seemed extremely plausible. SynapseIndia will now discuss the reasons that prompt a buyer to think better of seeing through an online transaction that involves the use of shopping carts.

Different Theories

57% respondents said, "I was not ready to purchase, but wanted to get an idea of the total cost with shipping." This statement is not hard to believe as all of us have done something similar while surfing any one of the different e-commerce websites over the Internet. 56% said, "I was not ready to purchase, but wanted to save the cart for later." This too is a common practice. You could have an account on an e-commerce site and your shopping cart there may consist of a few items that you might think of buying at a later date. 55% respondents said, "Shipping costs made the total purchase cost more than expected." It is not necessary that every online store will exempt its users from paying shipping charges. When an online user sees that the total purchase cost has increased with the addition of shipping charges, they may halt their transaction and end it abruptly. 51% said, "My order value wasn't large enough to qualify for free shipping." How often has it happened that you  visited an online store to buy a product and became despondent on realizing that you will have to buy something more in order to avoid the shipping cost? Lastly, 40% respondents said, "Shipping and handling costs listed too late."

Shopping Cart Abandonment Rate Consistently High

Shopping cart abandonment rates have been in the range of 60% over the last four years, which means that six out of ten shoppers did not buy the items that they transferred to their cart. The abandoning of a shopping cart does not always mean that the user did not want to complete their transaction. It often happens that a consumer visits more than one online store to compare the prices of the same product. In other cases, a cart is often treated as a shopping list that comes in handy to online buyers by offering them more convenience.

The survey brought forth two contrasting results that are worth mulling over. On one hand, the add-to-cart rate over the last five quarters has increased by 2% and on the other, the cart conversion rate has decreased by 2.7%. There is another reason why cart abandonment rates have been inflating of late. Smartphones are in vogue these days and after transferring items to their shopping cart on a their handset, many mobile phone users finish the transaction on their PC.

SynaspeIndia services may have an answer to your concern involving shopping carts. Continue reading SynapseIndia Reviews to learn of other developments from the world of technology.

Facebook Celebrates Its 9th Birthday

The world's largest and the most popular social networking website, Facebook, has turned 9 years old today on February 4. So, you see that the community website will soon be completing a decade. SynapseIndia, through this write-up, will walk readers through the Facebook journey so far. It was on February 4 2004 that Mark Zuckerberg of Harvard University first launched Facebook. Zuckerberg then was a sophmore. A year before, he had launched the initial version of the site known as Facemash that was blocked by Harvard authorities who felt that the information on the site had been culled out illegally from their administration records. Facemash became The Facebook.com before the name was finally changed to Facebook.

Mind-Boggling Figures

To say that the records and statistics concerning Facebook will leave you dumbfounded will be an understatement. In 2005, Facebook allowed its users to upload photos and 8 years down the line, there are over 219 billion pictures to be seen on the website. Post September 2006, anyone over 13 could join Facebook and become its member. News Feed too was incorporated the same year. The widely famous 'Like' was introduced in February 2009 and unbelievable though it may seem, Facebook has witnessed over 1.13 trillion 'likes' thus far.

There's Been an Evolution

Over the last 9 years since its introduction, Facebook has undergone an evolution. The Wall has given way to the Timeline, which was introduced in September 2011 and was subsequently made compulsory for every user in January 2012. Last year, the company went public by offering its shares to general people. The hype, however, did not last very long and the company's stock started to take a beating.

Earlier, one required a PC to gain access to Facebook but as users started visiting the social networking site on their mobile phone, its popularity simply skyrocketed. One can say that Facebook went on an app-releasing spree last year by providing users with Camera, Poke, a Facebook Messenger each for both iOS and Android, and Instagram, the mobile photo editing and sharing app.

More in the Pipeline

Last month, Facebook announced that it was going to launch Graph Search, which would allow users to search for places, people, photos, likes etc. There have been privacy concerns with regard to Graph Search but what is available now is just the Beta version. The main product will be released toward the end of the current year.

It seems there is no end to Facebook's quest for innovation. If the recent reports are genuine, there is a new status composer in the pipeline, which could allow users to select an emoticon as they update their status. There might be an entirely range of status updates that users can choose from. Through the use of these status updates, you can let others know whether you are reading, eating or listening to music.

Facebook is set to evolve even further. This isn't a prediction but an assertion made by Mark Zuzckerberg himself. As mentioned at the beginning of this article, the numbers involving Facebook will leave you astounded. Facebook currently is firmly perched at the top with 1 billion users. Google Plus comes a distant second with 343 million users.

We hope that you found this SynapseIndia Facebook review insightful.