Performance of the brand

The Oxford Dictionary defines social networking as”a network of social interactions and personal relationships”. More accurate definition would simply be “see Facebook”. The brand has revolutionised the way in which society interacts allowing users to upload photos, videos, organise events and instantly message one another.

Facebook is the brainchild of Mark Zuckerburg, a gifted computer programmer and entrepreneur from White Plains, New York. In 2004, Mark along with three friends,Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin and Chris Hughes co-founded the world’s most successful social networking site from their dorm at Harvard University, Boston. The brand has since grown into a global phenomenon with over 800 million people using the site that is available in 70 languages. Analysts have valued the company at around US$80 billion, a figure which will be enhanced by the looming IPO.

The brand is innovative and efficient but the real reason for its unparalleled success is because the brand is 'cool' in the eyes of consumers. Facebook addresses every aspect of social interaction in modern society: What’s your name? Where do you come from? What do you do?

 Facebook innovates by continually bringing new functions into the site keeping the brand fresh and interesting to interact with. Although many of these new functions have initially been met scepticism, consumers have eventually adopted the changes including the new Timeline setting that according to Mark Zuckerberg is “a new way to express yourself, through all the years of your life”.

The story of Facebook was recently depicted in the motion picture, The Social Network. The film follows the rise of the social networking site from the dorm at Harvard to the settling of the legal disputes brought about by the Winklevoss twins Tyler and Cameron, who claim Mark Zuckerberg stole their Harvard connection site idea in order to form Facebook. In addition Mr Zuckerberg was also sued by co-founder and friend Eduardo Saverin. The legal dispute appears to have had a minimal impact on the brand as user numbers continue to grow. The fact that Zuckerberg’s life was depicted in film has only served to enhance both his and Facebook’s brand awareness.

In 2011 Facebook was the highest new entry in the Brand Finance Global 500 with a brand value of US$3.6 billion and a Brand rating of 'A'. 

League tables

Facebook appears in the following brand league tables:

Rank 102 in the Global 500 2012.
Rank 283 in the Global 500 2011.
Rank 283 in the Global 500 2011.