Facebook’s philosophy is that society is in an age of information exhibitionism. In their view, people are not concerned with their information being shared. It is a time of openness and transparency. Per Facebook’s own terms of service, Facebook is paid by allowing advertisers to show users ads. The social network provides advertisers information on ad performance and interaction. Facebook also provides advertisers demographics and interest information of viewers. Information is what Facebook sells, so users do not have legitimate claims on privacy. When a user registers for an account, they need to agree to the terms of service. Facebook’s terms of service are clear that they will sell a user’s data. Users agree to give Facebook their name, their profile picture, and information.
Facebook has changed its privacy settings. They did so because of the Cambridge Analytica Scandal. Cambridge Analytica bought 87 million Facebook user data. This information assisted Donald Trump and Ted Cruz in their election campaigns. The data was also used by Brexit supporters to manipulate Facebook users. The data was gathered through a Facebook app called “this is your digital life.” Facebook has since suspended Cambridge Analytica. Facebook has ended partnerships with advertising data brokers.
Facebook has not changed what data they collect. They did make it easier for users to access and control their data being sold. Facebook redesigned its privacy settings from 30 locations to 1 location. The change was designed to make it more initiative and easier to navigate. One of the privacy settings is deleting old posts and pictures. Users can also delete old comments and likes. This information is sold to advertisers so they can tailor ads. Changing these settings will change what ads a user sees. Changing user settings with move people to different demographics. Old irrelevant data will not be used as true data about a user. Adjusting the privacy settings will also limit how someone can contact another user.
BA 207 Intro to E-Commerce
Groupon is an e-commerce marketplace where local businesses offer deals. Retailers offer deals on travel, dining, car care, health services, and more. Some big businesses can afford media advertisements. A small business can leverage its advertisement reach with Groupon. Group on capitalizes on smartphone users, which makes up about 83% of social media users.
Groupon has many modern e-commerce tools. Some of these tools are in their Groupon Merchant application. This application offers a point-of-sale system and a payment processing system. Groupon Merchant has an inventory tracking system. Groupon also offers the ability for customers to have their purchases delivered. If delivery is not available, then the product is at a nearby store.
There are some advantages to using Groupon. Groupon allows users to browse through a local store’s inventory on their smartphones. Offering a delivery service saves businesses from hiring a deliverer. Groupon is well known. Local businesses have an advertisement market not available to larger businesses.
I have used Groupon before. I enjoyed the deals I found on it. I removed the app because my phone was bombarded with alerts. This triggered my FOMO and I had to remove it. I am using it again because I am going on a road trip. Finding local deals will provide an opportunity to explore what city I am in. I did revisit the app. The first deals I found were for local hotels, care car, and tanning package deals. I would like to continue to use Groupon after my trip if I do not get so many alerts.
There are some disadvantages to using Groupon. Customers may not view a local business’s website because what they want is on Groupon. Groupon does take a percentage of the profits. This is difficult because the retailer has already cut the cost of their product. Paying a cut to Groupon will make a product unprofitable.
BA 207 Intro to E-Commerce
Pinterest has evolved from an image-collecting social network to a visual search tool. As a visual search tool, Pinterest competes with Google. Like Google, users can find images. The images on Pinterest features links to the source of the images, like Google. And like Google, Pinterest will also give related images to the topic the user is searching for. Pinterest is different because businesses can create visual showrooms for their products. Google can only show images and links to where to buy products.
One of Pinterest’s focuses is mobile devices. The company wants to challenge Google in search advertising revenue. To do so, Pinterest invested in Lens, a deep learning-assisted visual search engine. Lens is a tool used to search for clothing, home decor, and recipes. It learns from its users and recommends like-type products. Because of Lens’ effectiveness, Pinterest implemented it for their image browsing site. Pinterest uses Lens as a collaboration tool with other businesses. Through a partnership with Samsung, Pinterest works with retailers like Home Depot and Target. When a customer takes a picture of an object, the phone will find like-type items at nearby stores. This is an option not offered by Google. Users are not able to submit images and receive recommendations.
With users posting and sharing images, Pinterest has opened itself up to Copywrite infringement issues. The Pin It tool lets users find random images and share them, with little regulation. Despite TOS statements and automatic citations, users continue to share stolen images. It is up to the content creators to take the appropriate steps to remove the images. But that is difficult to do because of the amount of legal tape a creator needs to cut through. Few creators have challenged Pinterest. The task is difficult due to the size of Pinterest, which is what the company counts on.