There are a growing number of social networking sites that companies use in their business marketing efforts. The secret to using social media effectively is not to be everywhere, but to have an online presence where your current and potential customers are online. Contrary to popular belief, Facebook is not just for college students or personal use. Companies are increasingly using Facebook in many creative ways, such as to build their brand image, drive traffic to their website and blogs, advertise or get feedback on new products, manage their online reputation, attract employees, communicate company information. and as a means of intercepting potential prospects. For many companies, this increased business communication is leading to better relationships with current and potential customers. In this article, I will describe how a planned internet marketing approach can generate positive results for your business. I'll start the article by addressing some common misperceptions about Facebook that I hear most often from my clients. Next, I will detail how to use and configure the different sections of a Facebook Ads account. I will conclude with several recommended apps that will add functionality to your company's Facebook page.
Common misperception n. # 1: Facebook is for personal use only
Every time I give presentations on using social media sites for business, the audience gets the perception that Facebook is only useful for communicating with friends and family. Facebook started out as a closed community for college students and has not been as effective as LinkedIn in highlighting the business page and advertising features. However, Facebook continues to grow in use by businesses looking to reach over 200 million active users, and it has very powerful and targeted demographic tools that help businesses focus on their target market.
Common misperception # 2: Facebook is only for college students
According to the Facebook Press Room page, there are over 200 million active users on Facebook and one million new members join each week in the US alone. Contrary to what many of my audiences believe, more two-thirds of Facebook users are not in college. According to comscore.com, more than 50% of Facebook users in the US are over the age of 35; The oldest demographic in the US on Facebook is now 35-44 years old, and the fastest growing age group on Facebook is 55 and older. They also reported that Facebook ranks as the top social media site in most European countries.
Common misperception n. # 3: I'm too busy for this, and besides, it's not worth my time.
Some of the reasons that companies are increasingly using social media sites like Facebook is because they provide companies with the opportunity to easily and efficiently communicate with people in their network. Networks can include people you currently do business with, people you would like to do business with, suppliers, and potential business partners.
Social networking sites like Facebook serve as a complement to, and in some cases, a replacement for traditional means of communication such as newsletters and direct mail. Facebook can be used to regularly advertise or get feedback on new products, highlight the accomplishments or talents of new or existing employees, reward customer loyalty, promote special events and special offers, and create partnerships. According to a Forrester Research Interactive Marketing Online Research Survey (March 2009): "40% of surveyed companies expect to cut direct mail budgets, while 35% will cut spending on newspapers and 28% will cut money from magazines to spend more on media. " Some companies have reported that by using these online means of communication they have reduced their marketing budget and, at the same time, increased sales.
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