jonwashburn: This may come across as negative...

So that it isn't construed as me being bitter against larger social networks, I would like to say that I LOVE YouTube. I really like Twitter, and I am cool with MySpace. It's just something about Facebook that gets to me; it is like a chore just to keep up with all of those requests.

Jonathan - You're just too popular :)

You can't have time for every networking site, so pick the ones you like and stick with those.  I think my facebook and myspace page tell people to visit active rain.  Works for me.

A lot of those requests come from the way the applications are written. It's too easy to invite all of your friends every time you add a new app. I think Facebook has a lot of potential for reaching the Gen X and Y demographics -- we just need to figure out an efficient and effective way to do it.

Marlene, I don't think thats it.  It would sure be a snotty post if that was the case.

Jen, Yes it does seem to get overwhelming. I like that you tell people to visit AR!!! :) 

Jonathan, You're just a popular person. And, popularity has a price. What can I say?  8-)

Michael, If it was really a request meant just for me I would be truly excited, but from what I can tell these facebook apps just send these requests to all of a users friends indiscriminately. 

I have a account and spend very little time on it.  I want to know what its real purpose is.

I hate Facebook and MySpace but I have not given MySpace a chance... I like Twitter... 

Gosh I don't think I got a buckeye nation invitation... I must not be popular.

 

Jonathan, I opted out of Facebook last week.  Felt fabulous!!  

Thanks for the morning laugh :-)  I logged on to it once again because my niece "friended" me but in all honestly, I still can't quite figure it out and feel like a loser for having that list grow and grow and grow...

JW,

Facebook appears to be a battle ground for amateurs. The amount of emails I receive from FB ask if we have clients who want to "Swap Properties" or do "We have investors, who can bail them out from under their homes" while they still live it. FB attracts some very weird folks. 

I can tell you all what Facebook is for... that's how I spy on (oops delete "spy on") ... keep in contact with my kids!  You can learn a lot about real estate on AR, but you can really learn a lot about your young adult kids on Facebook! 

Not interested on being there just yet. Have't looked at it yet.

Jonathan - I can't get the hang of it. Sometimes the apps don't load at all.

I logged on last night after not being on since Dec 29th. Oh, my gosh...there was so much to do, requests, etc... I just hit the ones I thought might help. I hate that super wall. I just wonder where all our information is going?

It's fun when you have time.... like lots of time. But, I use mine for listing exposure and to watch my kids. Something about social networks, you feel guilty when you don't acknowledge their invitations.

But, I like the fact I can rss feed my blog there for Gen X and Y. That's where they are so why not?  Got several leads from that age group.

Jonathan, just wait until I add you as a friend on Facebook!  My vampire will bite your slayer.  And who knows what I'll nominate you for and write on your funwall.  I can empathize with you.  I've got next to no clue about what I'm doing on Facebook -- just sort of following the lead and playing around right now until I spend some time developing more of a "Facebook strategy."

Hotness?!...I guess I'm not approaching the real estate business the right way if that is the way it's supposed to be done!!!

Debe in Charlotte, NC

I love being able to reach people on there, but I'm with you, the extra apps are really annoying... someone should design a surface -to -air app killer app, that shoots down every incoming app before it hits your notifications? ;) THEN maybe I'd enjoy facebook a little more!

Cheers,

Heather

(I think I need more coffee this morning..)

Maybe I'll get everyone I know to throw sheep at you and see how that looks!   I just don't get facebook.  I do love AR, Flickr, Twitter and Plaxo.

I have all of my facebook mail go to the junk book. I'm tird of sheep throwing, too.  I like twitter and a little of myspace.

I seem to get poked all the time on Facebook, it is only a matter of time before there is nothing left of me to poke.

Hey Jonathan,  I think I'll send you a friend invite along with an invite to play Texas Hold 'Em Poker.  :)

I have not spent a lot of time on Twitter, looks like I need to.

Jon - I'm with you. There's just way too many features/options/gadgets...it's overwhelming! It takes you a good 1/2 hour just to weed through all the updates before you can actually start to interact socially....I love the simplicity of Twitter

Wait until you get a daughter on My Space :)

P.S. Shhh...I just deactivated my account on Facebook. Too much to take care of and no time for that when I'm writing so much here.....for business :)

Mmmmmmmm.  If I ever consider joining a "social network", I'm sure that Facebook won't be one.  Good Grief, everyone in my family under the age of 12 is in it.

 

I joined Facebook... and so far it hasn't impressed me.  I just don't see it as engaging as MySpace... and that is borderline.  I guess I'm just 20 years too old.  I'll keep plugging away, though... just to see what might come of it.

Facebook is a conundrum.  Most of the members don't get that it can be used successfully for business.  They are too busy throwing sheep at each other.  

Many of my clients are on facebook.  I have repeatedly removed applications that are tacky at best, but the damn apps keep coming back.  

I find it to be a time consuming pain in the butt at the moment.

 

 

Just wait till you start getting SuperPokes...

I am not a fan

You're not alone. This is a common theme found all over the web in the past two weeks. I think I've twittered similar things recently. :)

Since this morning:

BTW... one of the best uses of the Middle/Aboslute Middle alignment optino in image appearance. :)

I agree it's a good way to keep tabs on the kids.  I like to play Scrabble with distant relatives, at a leisurely pace.... oh that reminds me....it's my turn.

lol - that's all I have to say. Thanks for the laugh :)

I need to spend some time on facebook.  I am on there, but not really using it.  I have lots of potential clients on it.  I am not trying to suck up, but can't they all be as easy as active rain?  I keep getting poked by some guy from my high school who I don't remember. yuck.  Isn't that just wrong?

I'm w/ ya... the apps are annoying.

Though I'm having a bit of fun connecting with people. :-)

I just don't understand why I'm constantly being messaged by 19 year old Turkish boys... uuum...???

LOL

~Emily

The San Diego Real Estate Expert

I don't hate Facebook...I just dislike being constantly asked to "compare things" with people I don't really know.  Also, don't appreciate "sheep throwing"...:)

I HATE it, but I closed a 20 something buyer last Thursday that found me through Facebook....I spend more time talking to doglovers at the Dogbook app (because my dogs have more friends on Facebook than I do) than I do on rest of the site.

My kids and all their twenty something friends are on Facebook or MySpace - I really feel that this is where the next generation of buyers is coming from - so here I am deep in the learning curve again!

It looks like facebook is for teenagers, Jon...........

I am on myspace......

But not facebook......

Have fun staying sane out there!!

;-)

OK - if you want to sell real estate to the upcoming age group, can you really afford to ignore them?  They like Facebook, Myspace, etc and spend alot of time there. 

Source/Medium		Visits	Pages/Visit	Avg. Time on Site
1.	google / organic	199	1.42	00:03:41
2.	(direct) / (none)	31	2.52	00:01:16
3.	yahoo / organic	16	1.56	00:01:15
4.	facebook.com / referral	13	2.50	00:04:23
5.	activerain.com / referral	9	1.22	00:01:12

Google analytics of my other hyper local blog, which has a RSS feed onto my Facebook page, prove they visit. I admit the gifts, sheep throwing and hot request can really get annoying, but if that is how our future clients communicate, I guess I'll tolerate it.

 Jon this seems to be the consensus in the blogoshpere lately. Right now I just use Facebook as another link back to one of my websites.

 I probably get 5 - 6 invitations per week from "friends". Unfortunately I don't know at least half of the people inviting me. The novelty wore off quickly.

Jon,  

Facebook likes to do many 'things' to it's users without their permission. I've been putting off setting up a profile there, but like Michelle says...'can we really afford to ignore them'.

Would it help if we up your 'hotness' requests? ;)

This is just way too much to get involved in for me.  Call me simplistic, but A/R suits me perfectly.  I'm on myspace but rarely check in.  I signed up with another interface last week but I can't remember wth it is now...See?  Way to much overload for me.

I think that when people add apps in Facebook they don't realize they can skip the "Invite all your friends" thing.  They just keep clicking OK.  And the viral thing happens. 

Then, most of the people that receive the invite don't realize they can skip the "Invite all your friends" thing, and the viral thing expands another step.

Many of our non-real estate contacts and clients are on Facebook, so I would be conspicuous by my absence.

But I think I finally realized people usually aren't offended if I ignore or reject their invitation to an application - most times, they don't even know it was sent out.

I just signed up for Myspace and now I wonder if it was a good idea. Thanks for the info.

I'm with you on this one. Enough said on that thought. Have a wonderful weekend!

Jonathan,

I was just going to write this same post on RCG.  Not sure I was going to say "hate", but I'm sick of the generic messages that turn out to be nonsense.  If some people weren't sending me REAL messages there, I'd drop it.

I messed up my LinkedIn by changing my email address.  I have clients in both, and won't drop them.  But all of the nonsense stuff is bugging me.  I delete the Super Wall messages in my email on contact.