ad:tech Paris: Blake Chandlee on Why We Should Bow to Guru Zuck
ad:tech Paris wrapped up with a keynote called Facebook Today and Tomorrow, conducted by Commercial Director Blake Chandlee of Facebook's EMEA segment (Europe, the Middle East and Asia).
I already LiveTweeted the sesh so the last thing I want to do is type it all out again. The biggest takeaways: Mark Zuckerberg is God, and God's particular mantra is "Efficiency, Effectiveness, Scale."
One of the bigger bits of news eclipsing this talk was a recent announcement that Facebook is now 200 million (active) users strong. According to Chandlee, 50% of those users log in every day and spend an average of 25 minutes on the site.
And while the US once composed 70% of Facebook's total user figures, it's now just 30% -- not because growth has slowed on our turf, but because it's blossomed elsewhere. (France, for example, exploded from 2 million users last year to 9 million this year.)
Here are a few key video moments, punctuated by random Tweetdom.
o 'Social environments' are changing how we engage (yeah, you know you're getting an Obama potshot):
o On Zuck being God (part 1):
I don't want anyone thinking I have any problem with Mark Zuckerberg being God. Few of us can do what he's done -- at his age, and with such an even hand. I'm just reserving my prayer beads for when Facebook actually becomes profitable (2010, right? Riiiiiight).
o On how social media is changing our behaviour, and will ultimately change the way we advertise:
o On Zuck being God, part 2:
Worth noting: Chandlee thinks Engagement Ads will ultimately make or break Facebook in the next handful of years.
o On Facebook extending itself beyond the web:
o On being platform-agnostic, and not being "precious" about where users go from Facebook:
o On knowing Twitter "very, very well":
This was in response to someone asking whether Facebook and Twitter have beef. Sometimes I wish I could karate-chop audience members if I begin to smell the birth of a stupid question.
The Big Takeaway was a lot of touchy-feely "we love our peeps" stuff that Google used to spout during its "Don't Be Evil" heyday. Users know best, and Lord Mark shan't run his business at their expense.
Good to know the iron hand has such a gentle grip.
