Why should you be using Facebook in your business?
There are many reasons to use Facebook (even in a B2B setting), not least because more of your potential customers will regularly find themselves there above any other platform. But let’s look at some of the advantages (with a few caveats thrown in):
- It’s not expensive – setting up a Page is free. A lot of the apps are free. BUT you will need to commit time and energy to updates and we’d suggest you think very carefully about how effective the Page will be nowadays without at least some promotional budget (even if you don’t want to create ads on Facebook, you will need to put some money behind promoting posts, even to your fan base).
- Your competitors are using it – it’s no longer enough to simply have a website, prospective customers expect social media presence and if you don’t have that (and are making a splash on It) you can be sure your competitors will be.
- It’s a great way of better understanding your customers – Facebook is great for 2-way communications (and done well you can even encourage peer to peer communications). You can ask questions, carry out informal market research and Facebook’s analytics tools can deliver powerful insights into your fans and those that respond to your messaging.
- It’s instant – Facebook is a great way of responding rapidly to a crisis, or riding the wave of an opportunity that comes your way. But remember that you need to commit to relatively regular updates. Facebook’s algorithm rewards brands that publish engaging content on a regular basis
- It’s easy to get started – Facebook is very easy to use and it has all sorts of resources and wizards to help you make the most of the Platform (see, for instance, the new Blueprint online learning resource) BUT mastering Facebook with all the myriad opportunities it offers is complex. Whilst your digital native intern may pick it up very quickly, do they have the experience and gravitas to be the voice of your company. And what happens when they move on?
- It’s a great way of retargeting website visitors and mailing list names – we’ve all seen those retargeting ads online. With Facebook’s Custom Audience feature you can retarget on Facebook too. You can even retarget people who have visited a particular page of your website with a tightly defined message.
- It’s targeting potential is huge – Facebook has enormous knowledge about users interests, what they click on, respond to, where they live, how old they are, even their family and relationship status. This results in what is probably the most powerful ad targeting vehicle in the world. Want to sell polo shirts to 55 year old men living in California who have purchased golfing equipment in the last 30 days? You can.
- It’s global and local – Facebook can work equally well for a global brand and a local business. People can even check-in at your business and give you a star rating and review. Smaller Pages are even rewarded with better Reach than the big players.
- It’s viral – word of mouth referrals is the holy grail for most businesses. Not only is this built in to so many of Facebook’s communications via it’s Sponsored Stories features, you’ll find that Facebook’s users will reward your great content with shares, likes and comments – all visible to their friends and great social proof for you.
- It’s a way of showcasing you and your products – Facebook is a highly visual (and increasingly video-based) platform. It’s the perfect place to showcase stunning images, clever videos plus the people and stories behind your brand.
- It’s interactive – you can ask for opinions, seek out expert advice, tag people and brands at events and in photos.
- It’s another way for people to find you – whilst Facebook’s impact on Google’s search results is not great, Facebook search is here and improving. Plus the viral effect of social media means that people have a whole new channel of discovery at their fingertips.
- It’s easy to measure – whether you are advertising on Facebook or merely using the platform for organic updates, it’s easy to measure what people are doing with your content. Are they visiting your website (Google Analytics can track that they have come from Facebook, and with a little code can even tell which updates or ads they have responded to), are they buying as a result of your activity on Facebook, are they taking up Offers, do they respond better to this message/Image combination or that one?
- People like being on Facebook – Facebook is the number one site for time spent online. Active users visit it multiple times a day and love to find new things and be entertained there.
- It constantly reinvents itself and gives businesses more and more opportunity for marketing – Facebook is an incredibly powerful marketing resource and updates and innovations roll out on a sometimes daily basis. This does mean that you need to keep up-to-date with changes not least because being the first to use new features gives you a head start over the competition
- It increases brand loyalty – Facebook is a great place to tell the story behind your brand, showcase the thinking behind your products and the people that make them happen.
- It increases brand awareness – for very little budget a new brand can launch on Facebook and get instant awareness within a tightly defined target market. And once you have that online presence, your fans will help you spread the word.
- It gives you access to people at all times of day and night – thanks to the explosion of mobile (it’s the main way that people access Facebook) it gives you regular access to people without the intrusion of email marketing, pop ups or sales calls.
- Rapid customer support – without the need for time consuming telephone calls, Facebook can provide a fast and friendly customer support service. Again, a caveat here – you need to have resources in place to monitor incoming communications and be ready and equipped to respond to them. Users expect rapid replies on social media.
- It’s a place to have fun – competitions, humour, sneak peaks, behind-the-scenes access – customers love to see the less formal side. Afterall, people buy from people, not websites.
Do you agree? Disagree?
Anything more to add?