Nine years ago Mark Zuckerberg launched what would become arguably the greatest idea of the 2000s.  So what’s changed over the last 9 years?  On this auspicious day, let’s take a look back at where it all began…

First of all, for those who were not aware, Facebook was not the first social network.  There were many other players on the field upon its launch, and let’s not forget that the company did get sued over who’s idea Facebook actually was.

What made Facebook great was not really the idea though, but the execution.  Other social networks like Myspace and Friendster didn’t quite make the cut in the eyes of the public, and part of what made Facebook so sexy at its start was that it was exclusive.  Facebook was only designed for those with an .edu email address, so there was a widespread idea that everybody on Facebook was a college student.

Other networks tried to mirror the success of this exclusivity, most notably Google+.  In fact, Google learned from Facebook’s success even in launching Gmail. The idea that only a few could use it at first sent internet users worldwide scrambling for their @gmail.com account.

Even in its 9th year, Facebook hasn’t completely abandoned the exclusivity draw either.  With their two largest recent updates – Timeline and Graph Search – Facebook had users slowly adopt the changes and opt-in.  This created buzz, and got people interested and even excited about the changes.

Take a look at the first article written about Facebook, back in 2004.  Who would have thought that from its humble beginnings, Facebook would have grown to what it is today?  Mark Zuckerberg, we salute you!  Happy Birthday Facebook!