Facemoods Brings Emoticons to Facebook Chat, Gets Millions of Users

Israeli start-up Facemoods only launched in December of last year, offering a browser add-on that enables emoticons for use on Facebook's chat service, among other web products. So far, it's been a hit. We've watched as it has gained 4.4 million Likes on its Page -- and around the same number of users, according to the company. Facemoods is the brainchild of three entrepreneurs in Tel Aviv, Israel, who have bootstrapped and now employ 11, cofounder Arnon Harish says. Currently Facemoods has about 1.5 million weekly active users, and Harish says it's growing quickly everywhere Facebook is growing, including places like India and the Philippines. Users currently share more than 1.5 million animations a day. The service is also available for major email services including Gmail, Yahoo Mail, Hotmail and AOL. Users between the ages of 13-17 make up 40% of these users, another 40% are between the ages of 25-34 and about 55% are female, Harish adds. Geographically speaking, 20% of Facemoods users are in the U.S., 10% in the United Kingdom, 20% in Western Europe with the remainder in Eastern Europe and Asia. Such wide distribution has posed some developmental hurdles with regard to language, especially given Facemoods’ proclivity to utilize slang. In order to address this, Harish tells us the app tries to be as text-free as possible -- and although the installer is in English, it is set to be translated into the 10 languages available on the Facemoods web site. Installing the add-on is fairly easy and can be done at the company’s web site or Facebook Page; the browser add-on is compatible with both PC and Macintosh computers across popular web browsers. After downloading, completing the download instructions and restarting the browser, a Facemoods user can instantly begin using the app to chat. Harish explains Facemoods was designed so as not to interfere with the Facebook experience, although installing it adds a Facemoods toolbar to your browser. It’s this toolbar which helps the company collect revenue, incorporating various forms of advertisements; it also has a search function, several links to the company’s Facebook Page and the Zoosk dating site. Using Facemoods while chatting is very simple, one simply must click on the yellow smiley face at the bottom of the Facebook chat window to pop out the Facemoods menu. Then a user may select from text animations, smileys, and other cartoons featuring the likes of Lady Gaga and Diego Maradona. Facemoods has other functionalities that allow for using the animations in email, as well as Facebook messages, and in a few weeks, Wall posts. And the company’s Supermoods feature allows users to enter their own text to see it displayed within the app’s animations. The idea behind Facemoods came to Harish and his co-founders as avid users of Facebook who simply thought that the chat function could be a better experience. As users of Windows Messenger and ICQ, Harish tell us that he and his co-founders realized there wasn’t much content on Facebook chat and so decided to fill that need. As for Facemoods’ growth strategy, Harish tells us that the majority of growth comes from friends suggesting to friends, popular because one can only use the app with someone who is also using the app. However, Harish also says that taking the time to personalize content and Wall posts to specific countries — such as recent World Cup animations with unique music and animations — has made a difference. Another example of involving the Facebook community in the company’s development is the recent voting contest to determine the Facemoods Idol -- the winner will become prominently featured in content and get her own Page; users are also set to name her in upcoming weeks. These types of community contests have been helpful and Facemoods will utilize them more in the future, Harish explains. Facemoods’ secret to success is good content and in the spirit of good content the company intends to incorporate more personalization into its future products, such as tailoring content to specific country holidays, for example. Harish also tells us that, farther down the road, Facemoods users may be able to create personalized animations for use on Facebook.

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Facemoods Brings Emoticons to Facebook Chat, Gets Millions of Users

Sara Inés Calderón

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Sara Inés Calderón