> It would be much harder to promote new products and businesses through ads.

I've been lead to believe that the economy and all of human civilization would collapse if that happened. /s

Would it, or would it just be cheaper and more effective? Internet is still not a majority of advertiser spending, Facebook does not have a majority of Internet advertising, either.

I think it'd be cheaper and less effective. The benefit for advertisers on Facebook is that the rate of click throughs is significantly higher than the more shotgun-style advertising that was in use before Facebook and Google started managing so many ads across the web.

The same would be true for everyone else.

Yeah, but FB has irreplaceable targeting in the short term. Want to provide software to teachers or plumbers at scale? FB is really the only place online you can do this.

That seems like quite a claim. I'm sure I can reach plumbers via trade magazines, trade schools, trade shows, displays in plumbing supply shops, etc. In fact all of those sound at least as effective as targeting them on Facebook.

Source: I've managed tens of millions in ad spend in many mediums.

I think you're heavily discounting the amount if actual labor involved in finding and getting into those magazines, schools, shows, and shops...

Also missing on the multitude of testing that digital makes easier. I make no claim about true lift, but FB has built in AB testing tools for advertisers plus relationships with a multitude of 3P measurement providers.

Well, if you have no connections in the world of plumbing, why did you start writing software for plumbers?