When we ask our audience at both The Go! Agency and The Social Marketing Academy (our daily radio show), the overriding theme tends to be that many of you have created a social media profile/page/group….and nothing is happening. One of the largest sites that respondents focused on was Facebook, and in particular the Facebook Page for your company.
This issue is one that many of us are faced with. We log-in to Facebook, knock out a quick page and start placing updates or, more worryingly, sync it to Twitter and let the Twitter feed populate the page.
Here, I want to present a few things that you should do – focusing more on a strategy than a whole list of tactics that are supposed to be instant winners. Without a successful base strategy, all the tactics in the world can’t help.
So, here we go:
1. Look at Your Facebook Page as a Marketing Channel
While this may seem a bit obvious, many businesses don’t think this way. The thought of Facebook for marketing is a relatively new concept in the world of marketing when you compare it to advertising, public relations and even email blasts. So incorporate it into your brand marketing. When you roll out your marketing plan and decide where your promotional hubs are – make sure your Facebook Page is in that list. Just think, when you made your last major announcement, or spoke at a conference, or held a charity event…did you post any of the coverage on your Facebook Page? This is the sort of opportunity that many of us miss and can promote engagement with your target audience.
2. There is a Second Promotional Life Outside of Facebook.com
You don’t just market your Facebook page to the active community who are on Facebook, you need to promote it offsite as well. Facebook “Likes” can be a bit tough to come by, but imagine if your ‘face to face’ clients knew about your page? Have you ever mentioned to these clients that you had a Page on Facebook? This can be a huge missed opportunity. How visible is your Facebook Page in your marketing materials: business cards, website, email signature, commercials, brochures, print ads, direct mail…I can go on. Successful Facebook Pages are not built 100% on Facebook.
3. Have You Asked Your Supporters for a Like?
Every business already has a built-in fan base: your supporters, your clients, your friends, your family, your employees and their network…well you get the idea. The number one reason many of us don’t ask is that we don’t think we should “sell” to our friends and clients. That’s a big misconception – you won’t be selling to them all the time, which brings us to…
4. What is Your Message Strategy?
Why do people continue to interact with your Facebook Page? Well, you need to enchant them to get them to stay. I always tell my clients that in order to get traction on their Facebook Page they need to make sure their message strategy will educate, entertain and/or engage their Facebook Fans. You need to think about what you post. If you are a recruitment firm, don’t just post your latest positions – post articles about how to master the job interview. If you are a nonprofit, don’t just ask for donations – post or write articles educating your audience about your cause overall. If you are a social media guy (ahem) don’t just talk about your services – share useful content.
5. Pictures and Video – Where Are They?
One of the biggest problems with Facebook Pages is that sometimes there isn’t a lot of variety with the postings. Mix it up by using pictures and video. See an interesting video on YouTube? Copy the link and share it on your page. See an interesting infographic that your target market would enjoy and benefit from? Post it! Of course pictures of your events, meetings, conferences and the like are wonderful – if you can’t create it yourself, support someone else and share. It is “social” media anyways, isn’t it?
And there are many more to come! Make sure to check out Parts 2 and 3 to see the rest of 10 tips on bringing your Facebook Page to life!
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