Why is Facebook so successful, and why haven't other social media platforms matched its success?

[belle2486]

[voicelesscherry505]

I think facebook has a more strict privacy policy. With myspace one can customize it with music and backgrounds but facebook looks more simple and professional. The new facebook timeline they should get rid of though..

[nee]

If you're read books about Facebook and how it got started, you'll realize that Zuckerburg wasn't what you'd call the typical Rags-to-riches story. Facebook was originally a sort of online yearbook.

A bit of background on FB is that during that time universities were already starting up their own little social media intranets, but the idea of a international, cross-university network was ultimately more appealing. Zuckerburg also had money and connections to make it possible, I mean the guy went to Harvard. There were even times that he allegedly stole ideas from others, who tried but failed to sue him. He had people investing into his project, and once they saw returns more investment was secured. This is now successful business occurs; it won't matter if it will work, it matters if you can make it start and keep investors committed. Zuckerburg was rich, he knew people, and he didn't mind doing a few bad things to get it done or make FB better.

Zuckerburg has been described by many people, employees included, to be a total douche, and I mean the personalty type where he likes to pick on you, push your buttons, just so he can see you get a rise. The kind that won't mind using questionable methods to become successful. There's little reason to doubt those allegations, it all adds up to what I've read about him, and what I read in the news now.

So the answer would be that Facebook had a few trump cards and were able to put them to good use, overpowering over social media forms early enough to "catch" with most people. Once you put the idea that your product is better, it takes only its users to spread the word. Think about it, a social media that does one thing, or social media that does the same thing, but more, for the same effort?

Oh yeah Zuckerburg's a total control freak. He knows he can get away with unilateral changes to Facebook like privacy issues because everyone uses it. Another reason for it's success is that there's no equivalent competitor, so the monopoly of Facebook enables this kind of dictatorial behaviour- I mean, what are you gonna do, go back to MySpace?

[mikewill70]

Besides the answers you've already received I'd add that FB started with some great concepts then started to grow. Other social media sites have sprung up in the meantime (I've been asked to join 2 just this week). FB is too far ahead of them to ever be matched.