but is it really that clear cut?
take Google, since I mentioned it earlier.
Google had to made make educated guesses as to what advertisements may appeal to what people based purely on what they searched for; which may or may not have anything to do with that persons interests. and they still make loads of money from advertisements.
Facebook doesn't really have to guess.
it's whole model is basically a gigantic database on exactly what people want to follow and what they feel about very particular things. that's an advertiser's wet dream, and it's only part of the way Facebook makes money.
I think you really have it backwards.
On Google, you're looking for something. You are actively trying to find something. Searching for 'Chevrolet' on Google has a semantic meaning, you are pursuing information on or about 'Chevrolet' which may include buying a car from them or finding information directly from the Chevrolet site.
On Facebook, they think that
interest in cars translates to a semantic meaning. Frankly, it doesn't. Just because I talk about something to do with cars with people I know on Facebook and mentioned Chevrolet several times doesn't actually
mean anything. If I see an ad about Chevrolet on my Facebook page, I would probably either be annoyed or, at most, apathetic about it.
There is a reason GM is re-evaluating their advertising on Facebook but not on Google. Facebook doesn't have the kind of engagement necessary for "unrelated product sales". People don't go to Facebook in search of something, they go there to see what city their friend is pooping in today or what their cousin's cat ate for breakfast. It's next to impossible (for Facebook, anyway) to translate this activity into an engagement that leads to money. Corporate pages that can be had for free have a much higher likelihood of causing that kind of engagement (which is something the GM representative reinforced, as well).
Facebook is now down $7 as of closing today. Investors obviously aren't seeing the massive value that Facebook executives saw in the company.