It started with a simple question ‘who are you?’ And 20 years on, Facebook has changed multiple facets of our lives; from connecting with friends, relationships, businesses and more.
But there is also the dark side. A haven for fraudsters, unending scams and more.
“20 years of Facebook, I think the growth has been quite phenomenal,” Sena Quarshie who has vast experience in digital marketing tells us.
Today let’s tell the story of the good. For many, Facebook has revolutionized the way business is done.
Take Mabel Simpson for instance. When she made the decision to set up her MSimps brand that produces bags, sandals and clothing accessories, there was only one place to grow it.
“My first clients were from Facebook literally, because what we were making then wasn’t so popular, so when we put it up people were interested. I will say that my first clients were from Facebook aside personal friends who knew about what I was doing,” she says.
Kofi Osei is another heavy user of the platform. After university education, the platform has been his go to place, building relationships and strong business ties that has helped him sell T-shirts, kaftans, photography services and these days, woodworks including pergolas. 90% of his clients, he connects with via Facebook.
He recounts why he made a decision to prioritise it. “We found out that it could be an advantage for us, because then I don’t need a shop in the first place. I could just get out there and everything will work for me, people will get to see what you post out there, people get to know he’s into this, he’s into that.”
To understand why Facebook is such a thriving marketplace, you need to understand the numbers. There are almost nine million Ghanaians on Facebook. The net advertising spend on the platform from Ghana topped 8 million dollars in 2023, about 8 per cent of total advertising spend in Ghana.
The General Manager, Digital of Media General, Sena Quarshie says the numbers speak to the Facebook’s immense role in the Ghanaian business landscape.
“If you’re running any business in Ghana now and you don’t have a functioning Facebook page, it’s almost as though you don’t exist in the digital space”, Quarshie points out. “Some people actually just want to send you a message on Facebook and your brand must be there to respond,“ he explained.
He adds that “there has been a lot of positive growth because Facebook brings all these 9 million people you can reach into one place.“
The drawback, he reckons, is that “you will have to pay Zuckerberg, you have to boost your posts, you have to be able to generate some sort of paid reach before you get everybody, but at least there’s that sort of duality.”
Zuckerburg’s creation is not just all about growing businesses though. It has grown a community where people lend a hand.
In Ghana, at the heart of that is Wendy Boatemaa Ofori, who uses her page to crowd source assistance to help people settle medical bills, sort out fees amongst others from her Kumasi base.
“Facebook to me has been amazing,” she tells us. Through Facebook, we have been able to support a lot of sick children. Currently, there are 16 university students we are supporting and all the help is from Facebook.“
And then there are those who have found love, connecting and building long term relationships.
“… I thought I was probably going to meet him in school or maybe at a party, it never happened that way – it happened through Facebook” Stephanie, a nurse says.
So, it’s been two decades of pokes, connections and helping build businesses. It has also been two decades of a lot of unsavory things. Overall, it is fair to say it will be with us for many more years to come even in the face of intense competition from platforms like TikTok.
By Enyonam Haligah