So you are preparing to make a significant investment in building a Facebook application but you aren’t sure if the market is going to be receptive to your application. It would definitely be worth the investment to do a little research beforehand. I have many clients that come to me expecting to develop a significant application for next to nothing. The reality is that Facebook applications (or any other social networking application) require a relatively significant investment. As such, you should definitely know who you are targeting with your application and how to target them most effectively.

A few days ago I ran across an interesting report regarding undergraduate students’ usage of technology. There were some findings that I found to be of interest. One of the most intriguing findings was that of the individuals surveyed, 86.4 percent of students shopped online monthly. I hear so many people talk about how the Facebook demographic is not receptive to online shopping. The reality is that they haven’t been marketed to effectively.

Another interesting finding is that more individuals were using the computer to shop than play games! So is there is a deficit in the online shopping niche on Facebook? Definitely. Another thing that I think was revealed is the frequency of use of course management systems by students. 83 percent of students use a course management software tool several times a week. If someone were to come up with the Blackboard of Facebook, they would be in a good position. The bottom line here is that there is still a ton of opportunity in the Facebook application market, but companies looking to build applications should do a little bit of research prior to investing in development. It will be well worth their time.

Source: The ECAR Study of Undergraduate Students and Information Technology