How to make Facebook a Prominent Part of your Online Advertising
You've spent a lot of time learning how to build a Facebook page and learning what to post on it. However, there are some risks involved in this process that you need to know about.
Did you know, for example, that as a component of your business that this page could hold you liable? If you say something, you cannot promise or you promise something you cannot do, then you could be in violation of various laws.
Are you worried now?
You really do not have to be. Rather, you just need to focus your advertising and marketing plan to focus on your goals as a company. Even though you may market on television, in the newspaper and you still even pay to have your name entered into the yellow pages, you need to keep all of these forms of advertising equal. In other words, be sure that they all deliver the same message so there is no risk that you will over promise, underwhelm or confuse your customer. There are several key ways to do just that.
YOUR BLOG AND WEBSITE
Facebook should encourage your readers to move over to your blog or website. For example, if you want to provide information to your readers about an industry-wide study, leave a teaser message as your Facebook post. Then, link to the blog article that tells the whole story. This allows the reader to get to your site, which is ultimately your goal.
However, if the reader arrives and finds that what you said on Facebook was misleading or was not what you have to say on your blog or website, you will quickly lose them. In other words, be sure every detail is the same. This includes:
• The type of formality of your site, blog and Facebook page
• The people who work for your company and interact with your Facebook page
• The marketing message of your organization - are you keeping your message equal throughout?
• The type of organization you are - information-based or product based
Did you know, for example, that as a component of your business that this page could hold you liable? If you say something, you cannot promise or you promise something you cannot do, then you could be in violation of various laws.
Are you worried now?
You really do not have to be. Rather, you just need to focus your advertising and marketing plan to focus on your goals as a company. Even though you may market on television, in the newspaper and you still even pay to have your name entered into the yellow pages, you need to keep all of these forms of advertising equal. In other words, be sure that they all deliver the same message so there is no risk that you will over promise, underwhelm or confuse your customer. There are several key ways to do just that.
YOUR BLOG AND WEBSITE
Facebook should encourage your readers to move over to your blog or website. For example, if you want to provide information to your readers about an industry-wide study, leave a teaser message as your Facebook post. Then, link to the blog article that tells the whole story. This allows the reader to get to your site, which is ultimately your goal.
However, if the reader arrives and finds that what you said on Facebook was misleading or was not what you have to say on your blog or website, you will quickly lose them. In other words, be sure every detail is the same. This includes:
• The type of formality of your site, blog and Facebook page
• The people who work for your company and interact with your Facebook page
• The marketing message of your organization - are you keeping your message equal throughout?
• The type of organization you are - information-based or product based
Keep everything equal. If your blog is lighthearted with humor, be sure that your blog posts relate to your Facebook page in the same way. If you are a formal site and want to uphold that formal image, such as that of a lawyer, be sure your posts on Facebook offer the same type of image. Give people what they can expect.
LOCAL ADVERTISING SHOULDN'T CLASH
The way you market your business online and offline should be the same. A good example of this happens in service providers. On the web, they want to attract more people to their website to download a book or to buy a product directly. They use all types of gimmicks to make that happen. You may, for example, off those who sign up for a service a 20 percent discount this month by doing so through Facebook.
Now, let's say that a customer walks in your door at your physical location and wants to buy the same thing. Are you honoring that 20 percent discount? You should be because if you are not, and that customer goes home to check you out online, he or she is going to have a lot of negative to spread about you.
Keep local advertising in line with your online efforts. The two can play off each other.
• Facebook brings in your online customers to your store.
• Your local customers can be welcomed to your Facebook page through a message on their receipt.
LOCAL ADVERTISING SHOULDN'T CLASH
The way you market your business online and offline should be the same. A good example of this happens in service providers. On the web, they want to attract more people to their website to download a book or to buy a product directly. They use all types of gimmicks to make that happen. You may, for example, off those who sign up for a service a 20 percent discount this month by doing so through Facebook.
Now, let's say that a customer walks in your door at your physical location and wants to buy the same thing. Are you honoring that 20 percent discount? You should be because if you are not, and that customer goes home to check you out online, he or she is going to have a lot of negative to spread about you.
Keep local advertising in line with your online efforts. The two can play off each other.
• Facebook brings in your online customers to your store.
• Your local customers can be welcomed to your Facebook page through a message on their receipt.
In both cases, you are getting more attention for your product and service and you are building a strong relationship for the long term with this provider. That can make a big difference in the long term for your organization.
Whatever you do locally, do online. Whatever you do online, do locally to keep this balance.
Whatever you do locally, do online. Whatever you do online, do locally to keep this balance.
THIS IS BRANDING 101
One of the biggest reasons to use Facebook as a marketing tool for your product or service is simply to build brand awareness. Perhaps your local business needs people to get to know your name and to become familiar with your organization. Let's say you want people who need a plumber to immediately think of your organization when they need help.
To build brand awareness like this, you need to keep your brand message even throughout all of your marketing. The question is, how can you build brand awareness using Facebook? Use the same awareness building tools as you would offline online. Here are some ideas to put in place right now.
• Tell people what they can expect from your business - be specific about what you offer.
• Use pictures of your company logo, website and even your storefront to build awareness of who you are. Pictures speak louder than words.
• Give them a taste of what's behind the scenes. Are you a restaurant? Show off your grill area so that people can relate a clean, organized atmosphere with your organization.
• Educate the masses about your product or service in a formal and even professional manner. Create a guidebook, for example, on your topic. Give away informational packets (both online and offline) about a condition you are concerned about your patients or customers knowing about. Be the expert.
• Share news and information about your business. A fantastic way to show people you are a growing and thriving business they need to pay attention to is this.
• Post photos of your previous work or events. For example, if you just completed a home as a builder or general contract, put up some photos of the job well done.
• Use photos, videos and even a press release-style document to showcase your business's charity events and outcomes.
• Introduce your followers to the employees on Facebook (with their permission, of course.) Put a name to the faces of those who post messages.
• Is there a hot topic that's of interest to your business or industry? Ask for feedback and information from your audience through a poll or survey.
• Use visuals to display your points. Want to show people how to people are using your product? Create a few graphs and implement them into your Facebook posts.
• Give your followers insider information - no, you are not breaking the law here. If there's a new product launching, be sure your Facebook followers know about it first!
One of the biggest reasons to use Facebook as a marketing tool for your product or service is simply to build brand awareness. Perhaps your local business needs people to get to know your name and to become familiar with your organization. Let's say you want people who need a plumber to immediately think of your organization when they need help.
To build brand awareness like this, you need to keep your brand message even throughout all of your marketing. The question is, how can you build brand awareness using Facebook? Use the same awareness building tools as you would offline online. Here are some ideas to put in place right now.
• Tell people what they can expect from your business - be specific about what you offer.
• Use pictures of your company logo, website and even your storefront to build awareness of who you are. Pictures speak louder than words.
• Give them a taste of what's behind the scenes. Are you a restaurant? Show off your grill area so that people can relate a clean, organized atmosphere with your organization.
• Educate the masses about your product or service in a formal and even professional manner. Create a guidebook, for example, on your topic. Give away informational packets (both online and offline) about a condition you are concerned about your patients or customers knowing about. Be the expert.
• Share news and information about your business. A fantastic way to show people you are a growing and thriving business they need to pay attention to is this.
• Post photos of your previous work or events. For example, if you just completed a home as a builder or general contract, put up some photos of the job well done.
• Use photos, videos and even a press release-style document to showcase your business's charity events and outcomes.
• Introduce your followers to the employees on Facebook (with their permission, of course.) Put a name to the faces of those who post messages.
• Is there a hot topic that's of interest to your business or industry? Ask for feedback and information from your audience through a poll or survey.
• Use visuals to display your points. Want to show people how to people are using your product? Create a few graphs and implement them into your Facebook posts.
• Give your followers insider information - no, you are not breaking the law here. If there's a new product launching, be sure your Facebook followers know about it first!
As you can see, there are many ways to create brand awareness through Facebook posts. The goal here has to be to create informative posts that relate to your business and that get people talking. However, they need to be level. In other words, you don't want to talk about the latest celebrity gossip and then in the next post be offering insurance buying advice. No one will take you seriously.
MAKE IT PEOPLE-ORIENTED FROM THE
INSIDE OUT
Another great way to build your business's brand and to make the process mesh well with any offline work you are doing is to get your employees involved. Your Facebook page does not have to be something your employees are not a part of. In fact, it is better to get them involved in the process! They will love sharing with you and getting to know all you have to offer.
In some situations, it is ideal for the business to put a name directly to the person who is posting on Facebook on behalf of the company. In other cases, it is best to leave it to just a few of you. However, it can be fantastic to get people to interact with your website and blog by just giving them the opportunity to get to know someone behind the scenes. One way to do this is to ensure that your blog writer is the same person posting your Facebook messages. Here's why:
• He or she is often "in the know" about what's going on in your business. That means this person knows what to talk about.
• This person is already researching and developing great post ideas. They should also be working on posts that will get people talking about the business.
• This person is the one posting the blog posts. It is an easy way to generate great topics for your Facebook page. Just post a link to the latest blog update. It is that easy.
• Most bloggers are also going to engage the audience. While they may not be the right person to actual answer customer service questions, they can still interact with your Facebook commenters and give them information.
MAKE IT PEOPLE-ORIENTED FROM THE
INSIDE OUT
Another great way to build your business's brand and to make the process mesh well with any offline work you are doing is to get your employees involved. Your Facebook page does not have to be something your employees are not a part of. In fact, it is better to get them involved in the process! They will love sharing with you and getting to know all you have to offer.
In some situations, it is ideal for the business to put a name directly to the person who is posting on Facebook on behalf of the company. In other cases, it is best to leave it to just a few of you. However, it can be fantastic to get people to interact with your website and blog by just giving them the opportunity to get to know someone behind the scenes. One way to do this is to ensure that your blog writer is the same person posting your Facebook messages. Here's why:
• He or she is often "in the know" about what's going on in your business. That means this person knows what to talk about.
• This person is already researching and developing great post ideas. They should also be working on posts that will get people talking about the business.
• This person is the one posting the blog posts. It is an easy way to generate great topics for your Facebook page. Just post a link to the latest blog update. It is that easy.
• Most bloggers are also going to engage the audience. While they may not be the right person to actual answer customer service questions, they can still interact with your Facebook commenters and give them information.
In other words, your blogger is the go-to person for your social marketing methods. Be sure he (and if this is you, you) are always working on creating an equal marketing plan for both the blog and the Facebook page.
KEEP IT FRESH
Previously we mentioned the importance of posting often. How often is enough to get attention? That's a hard question to answer only because this relates to how much time you plan to put into the process.
• Posting at least daily is ideal.
• Post when your ideal customer is on Facebook checking things out - lunch breaks, as they are making dinner, after school, etc. You may want to research when this works for you.
• Post industry-breaking news as it is happening. Getting that first breaking news story out can make a big impact on your followers if no one knew the information before hand.
• Keep the information fresh and up to date. Don't dwell on statistics or events from a month ago (or even a week ago!) Make sure that everything you post is going to be specific to the customer's needs who are reading this right now.
• Update information as you go and ask it changes. You do not want people who just find your page not to have the information they need about the latest and greatest.
KEEP IT FRESH
Previously we mentioned the importance of posting often. How often is enough to get attention? That's a hard question to answer only because this relates to how much time you plan to put into the process.
• Posting at least daily is ideal.
• Post when your ideal customer is on Facebook checking things out - lunch breaks, as they are making dinner, after school, etc. You may want to research when this works for you.
• Post industry-breaking news as it is happening. Getting that first breaking news story out can make a big impact on your followers if no one knew the information before hand.
• Keep the information fresh and up to date. Don't dwell on statistics or events from a month ago (or even a week ago!) Make sure that everything you post is going to be specific to the customer's needs who are reading this right now.
• Update information as you go and ask it changes. You do not want people who just find your page not to have the information they need about the latest and greatest.
Perhaps most importantly, when marketing on Facebook using your business's products and services are your marketing tool, always be honest. No one likes a business owner that exaggerates the truth or is untrustworthy. You want to keep things open and honest to build your brand and to get people talking. Just make sure you do this in a positive manner rather than a negative one.
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