Facebook Agencies Make Buying Ads Easier

In an effort to increase ad revenue, more than a dozen agencies have propped up since Facebook allowed access to its internal ad systems, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Even though Facebook boasts more than a third of all online U.S. advertisements, three times as much as Yahoo Inc., the social networking site doesn't come close to having that same percentage of an online-ads budget.

Since 2009, when the company opened up access, firms such as Blinq Media LLC, Kenshoo Ltd. and Web-trends Inc have been helping marketers navigate Facebook's difficult in-house ad buying systems. These agencies are able to manage many different versions of marketers' ad campaigns, as well as make it easier for the targeting of niche demographics.

Facebook is welcoming these outside agencies, even though the company has its own in-house ad sales team, because these companies bring in new clients and can handle large scale campaigns.

Even with an increased number of clients, it is unclear how much effect it will have on Facebook's ad rates, which are relatively low. -- Tim Baysinger