Have you seen the Microsoft KIN commercials where a girl named Rosa travels around the country to visit her social network in person? Well, now you can have that same opportunity too. On the Facebook page for KIN, anyone who “likes” (aka “fans”) the page will be automatically entered in a new sweepstakes where the winner will be sent on their own “KIN journey” to visit their Facebook friends.
While the ads themselves are funny (or perhaps disturbing?) riffs on what visiting ex-boyfriends and online stalkers would be like, the truth is that in real life, most people don’t friend creepy strangers on Facebook. (That was what MySpace was for!) Also, the correct protocol, as everyone knows, is that you “unfriend” your ex upon breakup. Those who don’t do so learn the hard way when the ex takes to posting nasty things on your wall. Believe me, I’ve seen it. So take the ads with a grain of salt, they’re not intended to be taken seriously.
However, I think this is an interesting idea for a contest and one that will likely appeal to the youth demographic on the social network. Facebook, unlike Twitter, MySpace and others, is a site where most people connect only with actual friends and family members instead of with random strangers who share their interests, or, as mentioned above, those who virtually stalk them.
With Facebook’s built-in networks that help you find high school and college friends as well as former colleagues, it’s easy to reconnect via Facebook with those friends you may have lost touch with over the years. How nice would it be to actually get to go see them in person? I know I’d love the opportunity to catch up with my hometown friends and college buddies, who now live all over the U.S. That would be a great roadtrip! I wonder if I’m eligible for this contest? Hmm…
