Facebook from 2004: From a Campus Directory to Facebook Ads and Social Media Marketing

Thirty dollars a day bought the Harvard College Democrats advertising on thefacebook.com in spring 2004. Their message promoted a trip to New Hampshire. This small booking provides a useful starting…

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LinkedIn in 2003: How Professional Networks Changed B2B Marketing, Employer Branding and Social Selling

A résumé records what someone has done professionally. A network can also reveal how a conversation might begin. The difference between those two kinds of information explains an important part…

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Google AdWords in 2000: How Self-Service, Click Pricing and Auctions Changed Search Advertising

Before click bids helped allocate Google's advertising positions, AdWords sold impressions. That easily overlooked distinction leads directly into the history of search advertising. The service launched in October 2000 already…

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Larry Page, Sergey Brin and Google in 1998: How PageRank Changed the History of Search Engine Optimization

A website can declare itself the leading authority in its field. The claim becomes more interesting when other websites point to it. Even then, a difficult question remains: should every…

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Amazon Recommender Systems from 1998: How Collaborative Filtering Changed Marketing

A large online catalogue solves one problem while creating another. It makes many products accessible, but leaves visitors with the work of finding what suits them. Amazon's early recommender systems…

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Amazon Associates in 1996: How Affiliate Marketing Turned Recommendations into a Distribution Network

A website about dogs did not need a warehouse to earn money from books. A cooking site did not need its own payment desk or dispatch department. In July 1996,…

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