The latest Hitwise analysis shows that Facebook passed Google a few weeks ago as the most visited web site in the U.S. During the holiday season this year Facebook inched closer and at times surpassed Google’s weekly market share of visits. And finally in mid-March, Facebook clipped Google as the web’s most-visited web site. If you look at the trend and Facebook’s rise in popularity you can quickly forecast a predictable continuation of this phenomenon. But, will Facebook hit a ceiling? Will Google’s Facebook-like application Google Buzz generate similar success?

How will advertisers respond to the shift in online share of voice?

The interactive revolution and Web 2.0 have been going on for sometime and, in my opinion, the allocation of ad dollars will continue in Facebook and Google. Google’s core business as a search engine is not going away anytime soon since it’s a unique value proposition that Facebook does not offer. Additionally, Google’s search engine continues to evolve in response to search behavior and data insights. This proactive mindset allows Google to remain top of mind for searchers and marketers.

On the other hand, Facebook continues to attract members and these members are getting hooked. They’re beginning to interact with the site in numerous ways and the opportunities appear limitless. This new shift in online usage is impacting how marketers think. The social space is a clear departure from the classic four Ps of marketing and instead focuses on permission, proximity, perception, and participation. These social media marketing factors are very different in nature compared to search engine marketing. Search marketing seeks to capitalize on understanding the psychology of humans seeking to bring order to information as they seek navigational, informational and transactional information. Again, very different but the two approaches are beginning to blend.

What does this mean in context of Facebook’s rise as the most visited web site? Can Facebook blend their social community product with search capabilities and rich content to compete more directly with Google? They certainly can. They are clearly in a new position to leverage their web traffic to capture a greater market share for ad dollars. It will be interesting to see how marketing performance from this channel compares to search marketing as they both deliver different user experiences.

For more information regarding online marketing strategies, please call Luca Angeli at Wayfinder at 415-277-6968.