This morning Facebook made a major announcement.  They reached 500 million active members.  500 Million.  Active. 

To put this in perspective, 

• Most start-ups first pitch agencies/brands when they hit about 250K users. (personal experience)
• FourSquare just reached 100 million check-ins. source
• Apple sold 8.4 million iPhone's in Q2 2010. source

Scale matters.  Scale is potential.

Marketing is the realization of that potential.

It's harder to market to 500 Million than 500 Thousand.

A lot changes when platforms reach scale.  The more that people participate, the larger the network effect and the more powerful the shared experience.  The more powerful the shared experience, the stronger the momentum behind the movement.

The nirvana of movement development is to reset the social norm.  To create a shared experience so massive and scaled that it resets the status quo.  With 500 million active members, Facebook is now the status quo.  It is the platform of choice. 

Do marketers need to be there? 

    Only if they have a movement worth joining or at least a conversation worth having.

What does this mean to US brands?

    Your domestic marketing isn't the be all and end all.  It's time to think socially, globally.

What changes when marketing to millions of individuals at scale?

    Stay tuned for tomorrow morning's post.