2. Social media marketing is all the rage, but will your business improve by
having a Facebook page? Is it worth the already limited time and resources
you have? We think so. Here’s why.
First, of the top social network platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ and Foursquare, Facebook is by far the
most popular based on sheer number of users. According to its recent SEC filing, Facebook is now a social media
network boasting more than 900 million monthly active users, 526 million of whom visit the site daily. Pretty impressive
audience – not to mention, a really active one – don’t you think? So, by numbers alone, it’s hard not to give Facebook
a try.
Let’s look past all the nonsensical status updates that drive us crazy. You know, the ones that announce, “I’m finally off
work! Now off to the grocery store, then the gym, dinner and bed.” Instead, focus on the people behind the updates.
On Facebook, you will find a community of existing and potential customers and clients, up close and personal. These
people are an important source for growing your business and probably the best advocates – as long as you stay in
touch and keep them happy. After all, happy customers and clients equal referrals to new happy customers and clients,
right?
Not convinced yet? Here are five more reasons why your small business should
be on Facebook.
1 Build loyalty and deepen relationships
Facebook is a personalized platform where people share their likes, interests and activities, and having a
business Facebook page lets you interact with prospects and customers by sharing news, photos and videos.
When someone decides to visit you on Facebook and “like” your page or comment on a post, they are showing
that they want a relationship with your company. These are the people who could potentially create great word-of-
mouth referrals to their friends. With all this personal
information exchanged regarding likes and interests, you
can create exclusive, personalized marketing campaigns
(like promotions, deals and events) to groups of people
based on specific interests that are relevant to your
business.
For instance: A patron eating at a restaurant loves her
meal. She posts to Facebook about how great it is and
that message is exposed to her 200 friends via the news
feed. That’s potentially 200 people that the restaurant can
get in front of with no marketing dollars spent.
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3. 5 reasons why facebook is important to small business
2 Generate awareness and increase word of mouth
While you’re making new connections and deepening existing relationships on Facebook, you are also
automatically generating awareness for your business free of charge. How? Every user’s action is recorded
on Facebook and has a possibility of being published to the news feed for the world to see. So anytime
people “like” your page and/or any of your posts, this action could get published to hundreds, if not thousands, of their
friends. So go out there and promote your great content, new product/service launches, special offers and events.
Every post is an opportunity to get in front of tons of new eyeballs.
For instance: That same patron posted to her 200 friends, and
of those people who saw it live commented on the post: “Great Great
place! I loved
place!,” “I loved it too!” It just happens that collectively all of
it too!
those people had 5,000 friends who could be exposed to their
comments and possibly generate even more buzz, and still no
marketing dollars spent.
57% female/
43% male
250 million 425 million users by
mobile gender
photos are Average of 20
Facebook uploaded daily Facebook minutes time
averages 2.7 billion users spent on
“likes” every day Facebook
per visit
Facebook Facts:
From “10 Things You Need To Know About Facebook Right Now” compiled by AllFacebook, The Unofficial Facebook Blog
3
Increase traffic and sales
Facebook allows people to share products and services they like and have purchased (such as yours) with all
their Facebook friends. This is a strong driver of traffic to your Facebook page. You can also drive more traffic
to your website with Facebook-friendly applications, such as Foursquare, that allow people to share when
they physically visit your store (known as “checking in”), as well as share when they make purchases online or “like”
special offers or deals you are promoting. There is no better product or service endorsement than the proof that your
friends have actually bought it, used it or liked it.
For instance: That same patron “checks in” using an app like
Foursquare. It gets posted to Facebook and all of her friends
now know where she is and what she might be eating.
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4. 5 reasons why facebook is important to small business
4 Gather valuable marketing information
Facebook lets you learn how customers interact with your page and posts thanks to Facebook Insights. This
handy free analytics package, built into the Facebook admin interface, allows you to dig deeper into your
Facebook fan base, like a demographic breakdown of the types of people who like your business and what
they are specifically interested in. You can also gather the results of survey questions, photo and video posts, and
other data to understand more about the content your Facebook followers enjoy so you can create more of what works.
For instance: The restaurant owner sees that when they post
the menu for BBQ Wednesdays they get a ton of Facebook
likes and mentions compared to other types of content. They
also know, thanks to Facebook Insights, that most of their
Page “likers” are men who are over 45 years old. Since they’re Facebook Insights Helps You
appealing to an older crowd, they tailor their BBQ price points Determine Your Facebook Audience
upwards and include a drink with the meal to increase the
perceived value of the dish.
88% believe
19% use Facebook,
exposure is the
15% LinkedIn, 4% Twitter
and 15% “other,” while biggest benefit
53% of 47% report not using
78% of
small businesses social media for
business executives
business purposes
are using social media surveyed say
at all social media is
critical for
success
Small Business Social Networking Stats:
From “99 New Social Media Stats for 2012” compiled by The Social Skinny
and “ Small Business and Social Media” by CreditDonkey
5 Develop new products and ideas
Since your customers can be your greatest advocates, why not use them to generate new ideas? Most
everyone has an opinion they would like to share with companies they do business with (whether you want to
hear it or not). Facebook is perfect for this. You can ask questions, post “R&D” photos and solicit feedback,
or do a quick survey. Not only will you find some great new ideas, you also get another opportunity to show your
customers that you value what they have to say and have their best interests in mind.
For instance: The restaurant owner thinks that
I love brunch!
Sunday brunch is a complete waste of time and BRUNCH! YES!
money, but his employees feel differently. He asks
the question on Facebook and gets an overwhelming Yes please!
response that the customers want brunch! He decides
to offer brunch the following month and get the word Should we start serving weekend brunch?
out using a Facebook Event to all of his fans.
Have we convinced you that Facebook is no fad? Great! For more Facebook ideas and
tips, check out the VerticalResponse Marketing Blog.
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