The benefits and pitfalls of Facebook marketing

Part one of a three-part series on social media fundamentals.

ALICE GOLDSTEIN
Lead Instructor, Social Media Marketing Professional Award

If you say the No. 1 goal of a Facebook page is to get likes, comments and shares, then, well, you’re wrong.

Likes and comments are great and you need them to have a thriving Facebook page, but they’re just one component of fan page strategy. By focusing only on engagement, you are losing sight of the people who could be taking action—visiting your website, signing up for things, registering, and buying products.

Competing for customers in the digital economy is not easy. People look online to find businesses to buy from and they are predominately searching social media. Social media is launching businesses, leading to acquisitions and helping companies who almost shut their doors plan for an epic turnaround.

What social strategies are the best Facebook pages using? What metrics demonstrate that posts are successful? This three-part series starts off with why you should have a Facebook page in the first place.

What are the benefits of a Facebook business page?

Access a multitude of features

Analytics, advertising, and audience targeting increase brand and product exposure to potential customers.

Gather more leads

Likes by themselves aren’t enough to sustain a business. Make a connection with your followers outside of Facebook. Leverage tips, contests, giveaways, and newsletters from your website. Post content that is interesting and super relevant to your target audience.

Lower your marketing expenses

Starting a Facebook page costs nothing until you start paying for ads directed at getting page likes, boosting posts, or running sponsored stories—all of which you should consider doing with your page. Here’s a Facebook cheat sheet.

Reach a targeted audience

People who are interested in the topic of your page are your audience. Facebook campaigns can cost as low as $30 to target interests and gain over a thousand paid fans if done right. Organic followers can grow in the hundreds from the engagement of paid fans.

Build brand loyalty

If you consistently provide valuable and entertaining content, your followers will stay loyal. If your followers see you being active and responsive, they’re more likely to do business with you than with a company with no Facebook presence or a poorly run page.

Five Tips for a Facebook Page Strategy

1. Customize your profile logo—Show what you do or post a milestone and make it fun. When users search for a business on Facebook they can get identical business names. The potential customers should be able to identify you by your profile image.
2. Be patient—If your business is new to social channels, be patient. Invite your e-mail contacts when your page is 100% complete. This is a great way to get your initial burst of likes.
3. Use link posts—Post large linked images (1200 x 628) on your website and blog for Facebook. These link posts are a great way to increase web traffic. If you’re posting photos and expecting fans to click the link you added to the photo’s caption, stop now! It’s a waste of time.
4. Call to action—Don’t forget to add your call to action button under the cover photo and set up auto-response in messenger settings.
5. Multilingual audiences—If you have a global or multilingual audience, use the Multiple Languages box and your posts will be shown to your fans and followers in their language.

The next article in this three-part series will cover audience targeting and ad strategies.

Facebook is only one of many channels and strategies we will cover in Social Media Marketing Fundamentals, the first of three courses in UCSC Extension’s professional award in Social Media Marketing. The course starting Aug. 15, 2018, is taught by Alice Goldstein. A second course starting Sept. 29, 2018, is taught by Thomas Patrick Moyer.

ALICE GOLDSTEIN, BA, is a technical product marketer with EventLoop, a global event technology provider that provides solutions for associations, trade shows, companies, and festivals. Her expertise includes digital technologies and algorithm-friendly marketing tools, as well as social lead generation, story crafting for brands and products, and reaching a targeted audience through blogging and live video. She has redesigned UCSC Extension’s Social Media Marketing professional award program with an emphasis on analytics and product branding for all levels of experience.