Facebook Fills App Directory Position
Posted by Nick O'Neill on June 21st, 2007 8:45 AMI commented on Monday that the Facebook application directory was suffering major delays and suggested a new hire. Well it looks like Facebook has finally heeded my advice and is rapidly adding applications to the directory. Just today it looks like they have approved over 200 applications to be listed. Now comes the real time drainer: browsing through the applications to find which ones are good. Of the two hundred applications added today, I have found only a few that are worth playing around with. It looks as though many of the applications are not worth adding. I have even added a few that turn out to be non-functional. Let me tell you how disappointing that is. I can only imagine the frustration of a general user who goes to add an application only to find out that it doesn’t work. The bottom line is that the application directory is going to need to rapidly adjust to allow users to browse applications more effectively.
So lets say you want to launch an application of your own. What is the best strategy? First, create a useful application. There is no point in using an application that doesn’t serve a purpose. Trust me I have seen many useless applications. Although some may argue that many of the popular applications are practically useless, but that is another conversation for a different time. Second, have a seeding strategy. Many of these applications only have 20 users. Any application that has below 100 users is probably not worth checking out. As thousands of applications start rolling out (my guess is there will be close to 100,000 if not more by the end of the year), there will be a need to filter these applications. While a few may spend the time browsing the directory, most will simply add interesting applications that their friends have added. This is the viral aspect of Facebook application deployment. Just like any good pr/marketing campaign, your application will need a proper seeding strategy. If you only have a couple friends, then good luck getting your application off the ground. The only way that people with not many friends will effectively launch an application is if their’s is phenomenal. Even then they will face a challenge unless they can get the application to the right users. I have a funny feeling that network nodes (people that are the center of large social groups) will quickly become a valuable asset on Facebook.
(4.64 out of 5)
(4.22 out of 5)
June 21st, 2007 at 12:22 pm
On this topic… (and as I mentioned to you the other day, Nick) … The ap-tastic movement, and its counterpart: the “I'm over it” exodus from the ap-adds.
That is, what has struck me the most in this frenzy over — as you say — the 200+ aps out there, is the “ap shopping” that I have seen go on. Just as soon as 5 of my friends add X application, another 12 remove it. On my feed right now, I see this ping-pong action more than anything else. Where before it was a hodge podge of status updates, new albums, Wall scribbles, etc., the dominate aspect of people's FB'ing is, again, the “ap shopping.”
Thought: Are aps are the new groups? “add” the new “join,” “remove” is the new “leave.”
There is less of a statement being made by those who remove, say, the “I Like” ap, than when a political candidate for office leaves a group that is tied to ideology. It says to me “this ap is annoying/not worth it/cluttering my page.”
No final thoughts, just a discussion point.
Keep up the great work
L
June 21st, 2007 at 1:22 pm
On this topic… (and as I mentioned to you the other day, Nick) … The ap-tastic movement, and its counterpart: the “I’m over it” exodus from the ap-adds.
That is, what has struck me the most in this frenzy over — as you say — the 200+ aps out there, is the “ap shopping” that I have seen go on. Just as soon as 5 of my friends add X application, another 12 remove it. On my feed right now, I see this ping-pong action more than anything else. Where before it was a hodge podge of status updates, new albums, Wall scribbles, etc., the dominate aspect of people’s FB’ing is, again, the “ap shopping.”
Thought: Are aps are the new groups? “add” the new “join,” “remove” is the new “leave.”
There is less of a statement being made by those who remove, say, the “I Like” ap, than when a political candidate for office leaves a group that is tied to ideology. It says to me “this ap is annoying/not worth it/cluttering my page.”
No final thoughts, just a discussion point.
Keep up the great work
L
June 22nd, 2007 at 7:49 am
I think they need to do two things
1) Let users rate applications they have downloaded. Then have a Highest Rated column in the Application directory. You would then be able to filter a specific category, say Music applications, then see the highest rated.
2) Add an Application meter to the News Feed preferences. Currently, the old mixer is still in place and there is no option to 'turn down' Applications news.
I can see the beauty of Facebook being killed by this constant avalanche of application notifications in the news feed.
June 22nd, 2007 at 8:49 am
I think they need to do two things
1) Let users rate applications they have downloaded. Then have a Highest Rated column in the Application directory. You would then be able to filter a specific category, say Music applications, then see the highest rated.
2) Add an Application meter to the News Feed preferences. Currently, the old mixer is still in place and there is no option to ‘turn down’ Applications news.
I can see the beauty of Facebook being killed by this constant avalanche of application notifications in the news feed.