“People influence people. Nothing influences people more than a recommendation from a trusted friend. A trusted referral influences people more than the best broadcast message. A trusted referral is the Holy Grail of advertising.”
- Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook CEO
To many people, Facebook is a way to connect with friends and family, show off a recent adventure, find old classmates, follow celebrities, find recipes, fight for social justice, and the list goes on. For others, it is a perfect place for the world of marketing comes to life. With over a billion user worldwide, Facebook is one of the best tools an organization can use for marketing. As Mark Zuckerberg states above, "People influence people," so it is essential for businesses to have the buy-in of a baseline of fans and followers who will share your content with their network.
Facebook was launched as a social network in 2004 and has been diversified into a news source, a place to share adventures, or a way for businesses to connect with existing and new consumers. There are over a billion active users on Facebook, about 44% women and 56% men. The majority of users are aged 18 to 34 years old. The U.S have the most users at 13%, followed by India at 10%, and Brazil at 7%. The top languages are English (42%), Spanish (10%) and Brazilian Portuguese (7%). The top 5 categories liked/followed on Facebook are clothing, movies, products/services, restaurants/cafes, and fictional characters. (Data pulled from Facebook Audience Insights.)
Facebook Pages
The main feature for marketing on the platform is Facebook Pages, which can be used to create and grow your brand presence. You can also use Pages to build and nurture relationships with customers. There are different categories of pages that include:
local business or place
company, organization, or institution
brand or product
artist, band, or public figure
entertainment
community or cause
When naming your page, be sure to pick a name that is directly connected to your business name or brand. Do not use offensive language or the word "Facebook in your title. Use or logo or a clear picture of yourself as a profile picture and use a cover photo as well to make your brand stand out. If you have a preferred audience, you can add that during the setup process or at a later date. Be sure to fill out the description and about sections as well. Once your page is launched and you have published a few posts, you can invite people to like the page and track page insights to see what content is performing well.
Facebook Groups
For some businesses or communities, a Facebook Group may be a better fit, as it is even more suited to a two-way dialogue. You can have an open group, a closed group where you have to accept requests to join, or a private group, where only people you invite can access the group. Each of these types of groups has unique benefits, such as exclusive first looks at products or conducting focus groups. You can also use the Events feature to publicize new product launches or events at a local store to drive traffic. Two additional features provided by Facebook that can help guide your content and ads are Audience Insights and Pages to Watch.
Audience Insights
Audience Insights gives you the opportunity to gather and study information about various audience groups on Facebook. You can narrow your search down to a particular geographic area, specific job titles or roles, a specific industry, gender, age range, and more. Facebook then presents you with information including demographics, household information, purchasing trends, Facebook activity, likelihood to click ads, and Lifestyle breakdowns of demographics through Personicx.
Pages to Watch
The Pages to Watch feature allows you to follow competitor Facebook pages or pages you admire and want to emulate. You can compare total page likes, changes in likes from week to week, posts this week, and engagements this week. This information gives you reliable data to benchmark against. To use this feature, you need at least 100 page likes and choose at least 5 Pages to Watch.
Facebook Ads
Facebook Ads are a great feature you can use for various business objectives, such as boosting posts, promoting your Facebook Page, drive traffic to your website, increase conversions on your website or raise attendance at an event. The tool allows you to target specific groups, set an adjustable budget within your means, and get real-time data. You can test different ads, copy or imagery to see which yields the best results. Facebook Insights lets you track your ads so you can learn from past experiences to reach your business goals.
There is so much more you can do with Facebook for Social media marketing. Each of these tools warrants a standalone post, and we will be bringing that series shortly. For now, you can visit Facebook Business for more info on what the platform can do for you.
What are some ways you use Facebook to promote your business or personal brand? What are some tools on the platform you use? Share your knowledge and experience in the comments below.
Thanks for reading!
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