I like Facebook. I admit this openly and without coercion from Mark Zuckerberg/Jesse Eisenberg or Columbia Pictures. Why do I like Facebook? Because it’s a great tool for many of my clients. Especially the small to medium size businesses or professionals with small or single-person practices. They work directly with customers, who are almost certainly on Facebook and are using it to research local businesses as well as post photos from their kid’s graduations.
I recommend Facebook as one of the cornerstones for your social media design. It’s a great place to publicize your blog and website, start a conversation with customers or potential customers, and send out urgent messages. It’s also pretty easy to get people to Like your page—ask them, starting with repeated nudges to your friends to Like your business page. (After all, they are your friends!) Ask your customers if they are on Facebook and tell them to check out your page.
Facebook Works Similar To Google+
Like Google+, Facebook is content-driven. To be successful on both, you have to have fresh, original content your customers will find interesting, and publish on a regular basis. On Facebook, this boosts your presence in the News Feed, the source of all this website traffic. People and businesses that post more useful information more often have a greater presence in their follower’s and friend’s News Feeds.
Shareaholic looks at where websites get traffic. Its research shows Facebook drove 21% of all website traffic the first quarter of 2014. Facebook users, Shareaholic says, love to click on their News Feed items. When a friend likes or shares something, it’s irresistible for them to check it out.
Free Business Listings On Facebook
Facebook, as you should know, offers free, customizable pages to businesses and community organizations, which in turn provide viable avenues to attract customers. It is a crowded place: Facebook reports it has 30 million active small business pages. But then, how much is a full-page ad in a local phone directory or newspaper?
Facebook’s ad director Brian Boland says the number of people who Liked its business pages rose 50% in 2013. This is just the number shared organically, without any money exchange. With a paid ad, Facebook can better target who sees a page or post in their News Feed. Boland says people who Like a business influence their friends, who are more than 50% likely to notice and remember the business.
Facebook Ads Are A Key Piece Of A Social Media Campaign
Facebook says its size makes it more difficult to get a lot of this free, organic sharing to stand out in the News Feed. Paid advertising can supplement your organic success.
Facebook ads are featured in the News Feed—where it will stand out from the organic content—and on sidebars. An ad can feature a business page or a particular post. Customers can be targeted by location, interests, age, and gender. You set a budget, as low as $10 per day, and decide if you want to run the ad continuously or on a customized schedule.
If you’re interested in learning more about testing Facebook advertising, or developing your own Facebook marketing strategy, contact me.
