It is almost impossible to imagine a world without internet today. There is hardly an aspect of our personal and professional lives that has not been influenced by the internet. It may be reasonable to argue that internet has triggered the latest industrial revolution which is still in progress. While there is no shortage of internet technologies that have been revolutionizing the society, probably none has been as influential as the social media over the last decade. But even in social media, there is a clear leader today which is Facebook. Facebook’s rise is not surprising because it has become an efficient medium of communication and information exchange among both individuals and companies.

One of the reasons Facebook has caught up is due to more efficient means of communication. As compared to other means of communication such as phone or even SMS, Facebook allows individuals to stay in touch with more people and do so conveniently. Sometimes even direct communication is not needed for people to stay up-to-date on their friends and family members as status updates and pictures etc. convey much of the information individuals may seek. But it is not only communication with those one knows but also the possibility of communication with strangers one may share common interests with that add to Facebook’s appeal. Researchers behind the Digital Youth Project found that many young people use Facebook to find like-minded people. Before social media, it was not easier to find those with common interests but Facebook has made the task quite easier and efficient (Goff).

Facebook has not only been embraced by an average citizen due to its communication capabilities but even small businesses and large corporations as well. One of the factors behind the rise of social media such as Facebook as a marketing media is due to the possibilities of communication between businesses and their customers/fans that was not possible before or too expensive. Marketing communication in traditional media tends to be one-way, i.e. from marketer to targeted market segments. But Facebook allows two-way communication between marketers and customers which doesn’t only encourage customers to engage with the brand but also allow marketers to better understand their customers and do so in cost-efficient manner. One of the leading brands in the world is Coca-Cola which has an active social media marketing strategy. Coca-Cola’s Facebook profile has over 89 million fans (Coca-Cola) which are regularly exposed to the company’s marketing material and other public relations activities. The communication potential for reaching prospective customers is also great on Facebook which explains why Facebook helps launch several small businesses such as Mandie Miller’s Got What It Cakes. Mandie Miller had created a website for her business but it only took off after her sister created a Facebook page for her business (Zimmerman).

Facebook has also become a major platform for information exchange. It is not uncommon for Facebook members to share news articles and other items they deem interesting. The information spreads so fast on social media such as Facebook that there is even a term for it called ‘viral’. The informational potential of Facebook has also been evident during the last two presidential elections in the U.S. President Obama’s successful campaigns have also been attributed to more effective social media strategy as compared to his opponents. Social media such as Facebook has even been encouraging ordinary citizens to engage in information-creation. This has been evident during some of the major political events over the last decade such as the Arab Spring when citizens in countries like Tunisia and Egypt became citizen journalists and kept the rest of the world updated with status on the ground.

Companies have not embraced social media only to communicate with customers but also for other purposes. For example, Facebook has become a valuable tool for companies to gather information on customers. In fact, Facebook allows marketers to access the data that helps them better understand their customers’ preferences and characteristics (Simonite). Similarly, the companies also use Facebook to collect information on the potential hires. Prospective employees’ social media profiles such as those on Facebook help recruiters better understand the applicants and determine whether they will be a good fit. This practice of learning more about prospective employees on Facebook is so prevalent that a survey found that over 90 percent recruiters research job applicants on Facebook (Olson).

The information-exchange potential on Facebook is also rich due to its large global community of over 1.1 billion members (The Associated Press). This creates valuable opportunities for Facebook members to learn on a wide range of subject matters including foreign cultures. It may not be wrong to claim that Facebook is almost a global village though virtual in nature. It is clear that people now have greater access to information, often in real-time due to Facebook.

Social media has arguably been the most revolutionizing internet technology over the last decade and Facebook is the clear social media leader. Facebook’s popularity has been due to its vast communication and information capabilities. Not only it allows individuals to communicate with their friends and family members but also find other people with similar interests and, thus, expand their social network. Similarly, it allows businesses to communicate with customers and better understand their lifestyles and characteristics. Facebook is also popular because it provides both individuals and businesses with access to vast information resources.