Need I say more?

Social Media Just Went Mainstream

Image Credit: There’s a whodunit angle to this image. I received it as an email from a friend and have no idea where it was taken and by whom. If you have any tips or information about its origins, please share them in the comments.

Note: This post is part of a series on social media basics. It is derived from the extensive training module that I use for  clients. If you are interested in having a full-fledged social media training workshop for your company, please get in touch here

A while ago, I’d written a post about the opportunities that Facebook as a platform offers to brands. I want to start with some numbers (for more impact )

Facebook has over 400 million active users.

These users spend over 500 billion minutes per month on the network.

The average user has 130 friends and is connected to 60 pages, groups and events.

The math is not difficult. Facebook is today one of the most powerful and popular social networks on the Internet.  What’s more, it is also very easy for brands to create a presence and engage its audience with a variety of tools and applications. Here are a just a few benefits:

1. Search Engine Optimization:
   A presence on Facebook via the fan page or application provides a better  footing in search ranking.  With regularly updated content and enhanced engagement, the ranking will not only go up but also display in other related searches.
2. Engagement
   The Fan Page is a great platform for your audience to come together and offer feedback and suggestions by writing on the walls etc. Users can also post pictures, create and upload video, hold discussions with each other – all supporting the growth of the brand’s online community.
3. Cost
   The Facebook fan page provides a customizable platform with an audience that can be broken down and marketed to based on demographic and it costs nothing.
4. Analytics
   Facebook fan pages come equipped with a fair amount of analytics which offer insights into fan usage, interactions, demographics such as sex, age, location and more.

I’ll spend some time here elaborating on the opportunities for customization.

Custom Tabs

Facebook Fan pages come with some default tabs (links in website parlance). Typical ones include Wall, Photos, Videos etc. others are plug-ins which allow fans or visitors to view extended content of a brand. These tabs can be customized and new ones added based on brands’ requirements and objectives. So for instance, if you have a blog on your company site, it can be fetched and a new tab created for that.

An application called Static FBML allows for the customization.

Create a Landing Page

The fastest way to convert friends, followers and visitors to your fan page is to create a custom landing page. There can be multiple landing pages for different demographics, but it is suggested that one is created to start and study. Typically landing pages are rich in visual appeal and have a call to action. So if you have a service which requires signing up, create a landing page with a clear sign up form.

What’s more, you can decide which audience lands on which page/tab. So while regular fans can arrive on the Wall, new comers – who might find your page through ads, the search box or their freinds’ feed – can be taken to another page with a different message.

What’s THAT Image?

Displaying your company’s logo on a social media channel is not necessarily the best strategy. People on such networks are looking to connect with the human side of a brand or company. The logo sends out a clear signal – its impersonal and detached. Facebook allows fan pages to display pictures as large as 200×600. A larger image will offer better visibility and recall. Coca-Cola’s fanpage is an example.

Other Engagement Strategies

Events

Events provide an amazing opportunity for brands to reach out to their fan base. Best of all, these events can be virtual and don’t need to be in-person events. Examples such as Earth Hour which people “attended” virtually or Silent vigils are getting increasingly commonplace.

When people RSVP to an event, it will be distributed throughout the network via the news feed. This accords events the same value as becoming fans or liking brand’s pages.

Special Offers and Deals

According to a survey carried out by Razorfish, 40% people “friend” brands   on Facebook. Out of these 37% reported that access to exclusive deals or offers was their main reason for friending these brands.

Facebook has an app called Promotions which can be explored for this purpose.

Polls

A poll can be a fun, casual way to engage fans on Facebook and also get some valuable feedback. Polls can be published on the wall (and therefore newsfeed) or added to a cutom tab on the fan page.

So that’s a little info about customizing your facebook fan page. Of course brands have reasons to be concerned with Facebook introducing community pages. I’ll talk about that in another post.

If you have anything to add to this post, I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Till next time, folks…