@sue, I think your point is dead on Sue.

It can be very difficult for those of us who think and write about this stuff a lot to think in terms of “normal” consumer behavior so I find your post as refreshing as a nice, cold Coke I would almost certainly leave the Coke app without allowing it access to my stuff and rarely friend brands on Facebook that are not my clients’ brands. The ones I do friend/fan for personal reasons, I don’t pay attention to their content that much anyway and I suspect I am very much not alone. While Facebook traffic continues to grow I’d love to see data on how Facebook attention-span is trending.

RE:” They just want what the brands are willing to give them provided the customer is willing to give up its privacy. Do you really think that Coca-Cola is that sexy of a brand to be worshiped all the way into the #1 spot on Facebook? No. It’s the allure of what might be.”

Is it the allure of what might be? Or is it just a mechanical acceptance of the conditions, just another click of a trillion clicks? Maybe that, too, is my overly-analytical and somewhat jaded point of view getting in the way of my ability to see the allure anymore.

Sue

For one thing, I have better things to do than follow a site that requires me to give up my privacy and that of my friends. Lastly, wouldn’t most people become a fan of a business if only to keep updated on the newest products or promotions? Not just to be…or follow…or get their name on a huge list that is immediately swallowed up by more names.

But what do I know, I’m just a little fish in the Social Media ocean. And like you say, they must be doing something right if they are #1.