“What is Facebook Marketing and how it can help your business”
In the early years of social networking, Friendster, MySpace and Multiply was very popular during those early years.. Between 2003 and 2006, MySpace grew over to 100 million users, and by June 2006, the website was even more visited than Google. And then came Facebook.
By 2008, Facebook surpassed MySpace in worldwide users, and United States users in a year. As Facebook is gaining more popularity, MySpace declined, it dropped to 25 million users approximately in June 2012, some businesses had wondered about making a major advertising investment.
Facebook still continues on to be the reigning champ of social media sites, as the number one spot where friends connect and share online. More than just a meeting place for friends, Facebook has grown into a venue for businesses to market themselves through interaction with customers and self-promotion.
What is Facebook Marketing?
As marketers, we know how critical it is to have a business with a Facebook presence. Facebook marketing refers to creating – and actively using a Facebook page as communications channel to maintain contact and attract customers with. Facebook actively provides all of these, allowing users to create individual profiles or pages for business companies, organizations, or any group attempting to develop a fanbase for a product, service, or brand.
Who employs Facebook marketing?
Featuring almost a billion customers, every business should have a Facebook presence. It is at least as essential as having a business web page – and much easier to create. Whether you’re representing a big brand or a small business company, employing only a handful of people, you can bet that some portion of your customers – and potentials too – are already on Facebook 24/7. Commonly, Facebook marketing is used by:
- Brands.
- Local Businesses
- Personalities
- Non-profit Organizations
How Facebook Marketing will help your business?
Facebook marketing is also a part of social media marketing. Since, it is obvious that Facebook is the leading social media app in today’s generation and still going strong as Facebook adds more on what it can offer for it’s users. So let’s talk about how Facebook will help your business.
Who’s On Facebook?
Facebook may have started out as a social network site for college students but now nearly everyone with an internet connection is using it. The minimum age requirement is 13, but the social media site is being used by all other age groups. Facebook doesn’t have public data on their most popular age group but we can assure you that, no matter what age group you’re targeting, there will be more than enough of those users on Facebook.
How can you market on Facebook?
Facebook has three tools (pages, ads, and groups) that can be used by anyone or everyone. Each of these options has its own purpose, and they can be combined for greater reach.
- Pages
Facebook pages (commonly known as FB pages or Fan pages) are similar to profiles, but for businesses, organizations (profit and nonprofit) and public figures. Users can “Like” a page, which means they’ll automatically receive updates from that page in their newsfeeds. Users also have the option to “Like” the page but not follow it. - Ads
Facebook offers a fantastic targeted advertising platform. You can create ads targeted at specific geographic areas, ages, education levels, and even the types of devices used for browsing. Facebook also lets users close ads they don’t like and “Like” a page right beneath an advertisement. - Groups
Facebook groups are similar to forums, but with some additional features that pages and profiles have (like a wall or newsfeed). You can create groups related to your group industry or product offerings as a way to reach out potential customers.
Some ways your Business can make most of Facebook:
- Use Photos to Share Your Products and Services: They say a picture is worth a thousand words. And photos are the most effective means of driving engagement on Facebook. The more quality interactions customers have with your photos on Facebook, the more word of mouth marketing works to spread the news of your business to your customers and their friends in Facebook. People are innately curious or intrigued by what they can’t typically see, so give them some teasing behind the scenes look at what’s happening at your business. Sharing photos of your processes, like making coffee if you own a cafe or how you bake your goods if you own a bakery or bake shop. Also, showcase your employees (smiling employees) to further bring more attention to the human aspects of your business. Don’t need to buy an expensive DSLR, with your smartphone you can just snap away and begin posting to see what is and isn’t resonating with your audience.
- Facebook Ads: Advertise you online or instore sales using Facebook Ads.These ads allows business owners to highlight their existing promotions within the Facebook’s ecosystem to a larger audience than they would be able to regularly reach when posting. For more in for about Facebook Ads, go here.
- Schedule Posts from Facebook: Time is gold and your time is valuable; maybe you don’t have 10 minutes to spare in a day for Facebook everyday. Facebook allows page owners to schedule posts to be published at a later date. Set aside time to schedule posts at the beginning or end of the week to make sure you’re giving your business proper coverage on Facebook, while saving yourself some time. This feature allows admins to schedule links, photos, status update and videos ahead of time.
- Interact with Customers Right from your Smartphone: When a person posts on your wall or on a post shared on your Page, it’s extremely important to respond with insightful information in a timely manner when appropriate. Answering questions, responding to compliments, dealing with complaints and removing spam is one of the most important ways to give your audience the best experience possible in Facebook. Your growing community is made up of your current and potential customers, supporting them in any way you can will help strengthen their relationship with your business.