Alexandra Levits Water Cooler Wisdom Interview with Mari Smith on Facebook for Business

Alexandra Levit's Water Cooler Wisdom Interview with Mari Smith on Facebook for Business With millions of teens shifting their attention away fromFacebookto other forms of social media, the question in everyone’s mind is: is Mark Zuckerberg’s brainchild stillrelevant for business? I recently talked withMari Smith, a social media whiz who proclaims that Facebook still has its place among the most important business applications. Here’s what the co-author ofFacebook Marketing: An Hour A Dayhad to say. Alex: People have been saying Facebook is on its way out for years now. Why do you think it has staying power? Mari: Facebook has become an ingrained daily habit for hundreds of millions of people around the world. It’s the first place we check upon awakening and last thing at night. We stay in touch with what’s happening in the lives of our old school chums, current friends, family members and other loved ones. It’s simplypsychologythat gives Facebook its staying power. And, so long as the masses continue to use the site as the one commonplatform for connecting, it will succeed. Alex: One common view is thatLinkedInis for professional relationships and Facebook is for personal relationships. What can Facebook do for professional relationships that LinkedIn can’t? Mari: Facebook provides an inviting context for personal sharing; at least, as much as users are willing to share. It’s natural to want to share tidbits from your weekend away, what restaurant you’re enjoying right now, wedding photos, baby pictures, travel snaps, fun cat videos and the like on Facebook. B2C and B2B is all P2P: People to People. Businesses are run by people and people are on Facebook. Therefore, when business users take the time to cultivate friendships on Facebook with professional contacts, it can help deepen these foundational relationships, which often leads to more business. For the rest of Maris interview, check out Intuits Fast Track blog.