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Context Optional: For brand fans who never want to leave Facebook

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Oh, Facebook, you pretty blue security blanket of the 21st century. Why would anyone want to leave you? You’re so chock full of information geared to each member. Plus, all our friends are there -- it’s like ‘Cheers’ but with mouse pads instead of beer coasters.

It’s always great when favorite brands can update streams with useful info like sales and new items, but it’s just so pesky leaving the safe online world we’ve created by having to click on a link to another site. Or at least that’s what San Francisco-based social marketing company Context Optional thought. Which is why it’s unveiling Social Marketing Suite, a Facebook software that allows brands it’s partnered with to offer quizzes, videos, coupons and more within the Facebook stream, meaning you never have to leave your Facebook homepage, IM session or photo tagging to wander to another site.

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‘One of the most interesting shifts we’ve seen on the Web is that we’re moving a little bit from a world of [individual] search to finding what my friends are telling me about,’ said Kevin Barenblat, Context Optional’s chief executive and co-founder.

There are geo-targeting tools, such as a partnership with Live Nation that will tell Lady Gaga fans in specific cities when she’s coming to their town. And publishing tools allow for scheduling blasts in advance (no one wants to work on Black Friday, but someone’s got to tell the Facebook fans about that 2-for-1 deal) The video above explains some more perks.

What do you think? Do you like having everything in your Facebook stream or do you prefer to get a hint of a special there and click off to explore? Do you like the idea of brand pages becoming more automated?

-- Whitney Friedlander

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