12 August 2010 | Author: D. Warburton Search Copywriter

Facebook may enlist AOL's advertising expertise

Struggling social media pioneer AOL could enjoy a return to glory under a new advertising deal with Facebook.

The New York Post reported on Wednesday that the two companies have been in discussions "for several months" about AOL lending its experience in selling online ads to boost Facebook's expertise at promotion.

Such a deal would likely be good news for AOL's struggling finances, as the company recently reported an overall second quarter loss of $1.6 billion (£1 billion), or $9.89 (£6.20) per share, in the year that saw it finally cutting its ties with Bebo.

While that social network may not have proved to be the success AOL hoped, Facebook's 500-million-strong user base isn't going anywhere in a hurry, meaning AOL has everything to gain from such a partnership.

So why would the mighty Facebook want to enlist the help of AOL? Internet consultant Shelly Palmer of Advanced Media Ventures Group summed it up succinctly, stating: "Think of [AOL CEO] Tim Armstrong's former role running ad sales for Google and think of where Facebook needs help."

In addition to its marketing expertise, AOL boasts a large amount of content that could also make it more appealing to Facebook. Palmer explained: "Put them together, you get context, contact and content."

Neither company has thus far commented on the rumours, however.

Earlier this year, Facebook signed a new ad deal with Microsoft to sell banner ads on the social networking site, while Microsoft's Bing engine was also enlisted to power Facebook's search results.

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