February 06, 2012

Facebook hires first CMO

Rebecca Van Dyck

Facebook has hired Rebecca Van Dyck, SVP and CMO at Levi Strauss & Co. to join the social network as its first head of global marketing, according to reports.

Van Dyck has been global CMO for the Levi's brand since April 2011, where she was in charge of the “Go Forth” campaign. Alexa Rudin, senior global director, Levi's brand PR & communications, confirmed Van Dyck's move via email, writing, "We wish Becca the best in her new endeavor."

The news comes on the heels of Facebook filing for a $5 billion initial public offering (IPO) last week. In the filing, Facebook detailed its offerings for advertisers and marketers revealing that advertisers can show their ads to a subset of users based on demographic factors and specific interests. According to the filing, Facebook recorded revenue of $3.7 billion in 2011, a 97% increase compared with the prior year.

The news also comes as The Financial Times reports that Facebook will reportedly begin showing ads to users on mobile phones.

According to Van Dyck's LinkedIn page, prior to joining Levi's, she was senior director of worldwide marketing at Apple from 2007 to 2011, during the period of time that the iPhone and the iPad launched. Before that she worked for advertising agency Wieden + Kennedy where she served as the global account director for Nike for more than a decade. Van Dyck got her start in advertising at Chiat Day New York in 1992 where she worked as an account executive.

Repeated requests for comment to Facebook and Van Dyck were not immediately returned.