In a world dominated by social media, businesses that don’t have a presence in social media sites, Facebook in particular, are certainly missing a lot. Over the years, Facebook marketing has proven to be quite effective at building relationships between businesses and its fans who, more often than not, eventually turn into loyal customers.
If you don’t want to be left behind, you better start promoting your brand on Facebook. However, there are certain do’s and don’ts of Facebook marketing that you need to keep in mind when you create a Facebook page and maintain it.
Facebook Marketing Do’s
1. Keep your posts short. In case you didn’t notice, posts on Twitter are limited to just 140 characters, for the very obvious reason that short and sweet posts get more attention and engagement from visitors and fans. Do the same when promoting your brand on Facebook.
2. Post a variety of content. Don’t just stick with text for posts. To keep your page more interesting to people, you should post videos, pictures and audio as well. They make people stay on and talk about your page longer, and that is certainly better.
3. Provide helpful links. While promoting your brand on Facebook may be the primary reason you created a Facebook page in the first place, never forget that you have an obligation to educate your fans. Providing helpful links would be a good step in that direction.
4. Engage your fans. Business owners who create a Facebook page and take an interest in communicating with fans and loyal customers are always appreciated.
5. Answer questions. It’s but common for fans to ask questions, and it is your duty to answer them.
6. Ask questions. When you post questions, your fans are highly likely to give you feedback, which could eventually be useful for your business.
7. Always say thanks. This never goes out of style, whether you’re thanking someone for a drink of water or promoting your brand on Facebook.
7. Run contests or promotions. Nothing would interest fans and customers more than a chance to win something or get stuff at discounted prices.
8. Post pictures of your team. Post pictures of your business and the people who help you run it. People would certainly appreciate seeing that the brand they’re following has a face, or faces in this case.
9. Interact with other people in your niche. When you create a Facebook page, always remember that no Facebook page is an island. Make sure to find people in your niche and interact with them and their followers.
10. Always keep people informed. Notify your fans of any news that concerns your business, from changes in management to days when your shop won’t be doing any business.
Facebook marketing don’ts
1. Post boring or irrelevant content. Posts should always be somehow relevant to your business. It does not make sense to post, say, something about the troubles in the Middle East when you’re selling beauty products. At least post something that you can somehow relate to your brand.
2. Overpost. Posting too much or too frequently in the course of promoting your brand on Facebook can annoy even your most loyal followers. Making one post a day would be a good rule of thumb.
3. Post grammatically atrocious content. No matter what people say about proper grammar being no longer necessary, don’t fall for that. Grammatical errors or misspelled words in your posts reflect on your brand, and you don’t want carelessness and plain incompetence to be associated with your business, do you?
4. Be shy. What’s the point of creating a Facebook page for your brand and not engaging your fans? Your page is your chance to speak directly to customers and potential customers, so clamming up should never be an option.
5. Promote excessively. Sure, you decided to create a Facebook page to promote your brand, but never make it the end-all and be-all of the existence of your page. If you can help it, make your posts about 90% fun and informative and 10% all about promoting your brand on Facebook.
6. Discuss religion or politics. Remember that your fans have their own religious and political affiliations. You can’t talk about one religious or political topic and not step on the toes of some who may have other points of view on the matter.
7. Talk trash about the competition. Nothing makes you sound more juvenile than badmouthing your competitors. You didn’t create a Facebook page for your brand to pick a fight, after all.
8. Give out TMI. Sharing company secrets, ranting about employees and griping about certain customers constitutes giving too much information. Not everything should be shared on Facebook. TMI will always be a turnoff whether or not we’re talking about individuals or business.
9. Post responses in haste. While prompt replies to comments or queries are appreciated, it is essential for your responses to be well-thought out and accurate, things you simply cannot do when you respond hastily. Answer promptly, but always take your time and double-check your reply before posting.
10. Expect instant results. Promoting your brand on Facebook is just like planting a fruit-bearing plant. Reaping its rewards could take some time and nurturing, so be patient, and don’t expect to have thousands of fans by the end of the first week.
Having a presence in the largest social media platform in the world will certainly be good for your brand. Follow the do’s and don’ts of Facebook marketing outlined above when you create a Facebook page, and your chances of promoting your brand on Facebook successfully will be so much better.