Facebook's role in grassroots PR

At the grassroots level of public relations, Facebook has become a new way for companies to connect with the public, but a CNN article speculates as to whether Facebook can continue. The social networking site isn’t a “slam-dunk success,” as Adam of Lashinsky of Fortune Magazine says. Even though the site is selling advertising, it isn’t as profitable as other social networking websites. For example, in 2007 Microsoft paid $250 million for a 1.6 percent share, earning Facebook a $15 billion value. However, the present global economic crisis raises the question of whether Facebook can sustain its web advertising, which is its main source of revenue. Web advertising has particularly taken a hit in the economy, and it seems that “those sort of figures now appear to belong to a bygone age.”
Social networking web sites have become an important way for fledging organizations and businesses to establish a reputation. Even though Facebook has reached its 5th birthday, it is uncertain whether or not it is a technological fad due to the “rapid evolution” of the Internet age. It is too soon to tell, but the site’s founder, Mark Zuckerman, says that the site will continue to work on innovative measures. He stated, “The challenge motivates us to keep innovating and pushing technical boundaries to produce better ways to share information.” Though it seems unlikely that Facebook will shut down, it does make one wonder how small organizations can begin to grow without the use of the free social networking accounts on the Internet. If the economy does become that terrible, what will happen to social networking in this Internet age?

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/02/04/facebook.anniversary/index.html?iref=newssearch