Become a friend to your customers on Facebook

At it’s heart, Facebook is a way to connect with friends and family.  Log onto your own FB account and you’re bound to find selfies, baby photos, birthday reminders, links related to healthy living and exercise, check-ins at local bars and restaurants, etc. These are all things that are centered around our personal lives and are shared with the friends and family who matter most to us.  

So it’s no wonder that it’s difficult for small businesses to break into the FB game.  We aren’t family members.  We’re kinda friendly, but not enough to be FB friends.  So how can we change things and get people to start thinking of us differently?  It’s a tall task, but one that can be overcome with a good plan and some focused effort.  Here’s what we’d suggest...

1.  Share interesting photos on Facebook In reviewing my own page, it’s clear that photos and visual content are a huge part of what makes Facebook tick.  Take a lesson and share interesting photos related to your business.

Every business is built on people, so make sure to include them in your postings.  It’s always interesting to see who makes the engine go, especially at a small company.  Get candid shots of what goes on behind the scenes and followers will begin to see you as human - not just a company.

2.  Grow your follower list with a good deal

People love to feel as though they’re saving money.  Kim, a friend of mine on FB, will often ask for Kohl’s coupons when she’s ready to make a big purchase.  

Small businesses can learn from this, so sharpen your pencil and figure out a coupon or collection of seasonal promotions that draws them in and keeps them friendly. It doesn’t have to be a huge savings - just something that says you value their business and would enjoy their support in the future.  It may be just the nudge that they need to become a Facebook follower… and a customer for life.

3.  Help followers discover new things

Whenever I see friends at different locations like restaurants, concert venues and vacation spots, a part of me always says  “I’d like to check that out, too.”  Or if there’s an event coming up and Facebook tells me that friends are going, I’ll probably want to be a part of it as well..  The point here is that Facebook can very often be a way for users to find out about places to go and things to do.  

If you’re a small business with a strong local customer base, be sure to share area news and interesting events with your followers.  You’ll begin to paint yourself as the local expert and a resource for people who want to know more about what’s happening in the area.  As an added step, visit these locations and be sure to post photos. Two birds, one stone!

4.  Tease new products to build interest on Facebook

I have a friend named Vern.  We’ve been friends for a long time and have very similar tastes in music, so whenever we get together, our conversation goes like this… “Dude.  Have you ever heard of XYZ band?  They’re kinda like ABC, but with 123 on vocals and a heavier sound.”  Since Vern knows that we enjoy the same types of music, he’s betting that I’ll like XYZ band as well.  Once my interest is piqued, it’s more than likely that I’ll soon join him as a fan.  And until I actually listen to their music, I’ll have to trust Vern’s recommendation.  

In this example, you’re Vern.  You know that followers already like your existing product or service.  So one way to build interest in new offerings is to tease them on your FB page.  Post exclusive photos and talk about how this new product will be different and better.  Until the product or service is launched, followers will be hanging on your every word because you know exactly what they like.  

5.  Take a controversial stance on an issue to start a dialogue

During the last election, I got to know a lot about the people that I’m friends with.  They felt so strongly about the candidates and issues that they couldn’t help but share their opinions.  

Personally, I would avoid political issues because it can be somewhat polarizing.  A better approach would be to ask questions on topics related to your business.  By creating an open forum for followers, you can get input on your own product or service, trends in the industry and more.  Throw in a question or two about things unrelated to your industry just to keep things light.  

REMEMBER: People like to do business with other people

When considering your strategy for Facebook, it’s most important to realize that people like to do business with other people, not just a corporate machine.  As small businesses, we have the advantage of being able to bring a human element and personal touch to everything that we do, including Facebook. By following these 5 tips, you can start building a relationship with your followers and start utilizing the power of your Facebook friends.

Delete your Facebook page

Delete your Facebook page.  There.  I’ve said it.  

I’ve been going around and around on this issue for quite a long time and for good reason.  

I’ve read posts from the top Facebook marketers and they all praise the new targeting tools that allow you to reach potential customers with pinpoint accuracy.  Their metrics show great success when you can filter your audience down to the most minute detail.  

I’m also following marketing experts who criticize Facebook for forcing businesses to pay to reach all of their followers.  We all work extremely hard to build the number of Likes, but in the end, Facebook only displays our posts to 16% of those people.  Inorder to reach the other 84%, you need to pay to use Facebook advertising and all of those fancy new targeting tools.  

So I guess in the end, Facebook has the potential of working if you’re willing to invest money into their advertising platform.  But as a small business, your marketing budget is probably small.  What we use to compensate for small marketing budgets is time, another valuable commodity that can help a business grow when used effectively.  With that being said, is Facebook an effective use of your time?  

Wasting time or time well spent?

I get caught up in saying that Facebook time is time well spent, but upon closer inspection, I’m not so sure.  I’ve been deluding myself into thinking that it’s productive time because 1. I’m using social media and staying abreast of what’s new and 2. I’m posting content that relates to the work that we do here at Terrapin.  

But when I look back at the time I’ve spent, I can’t say that any of it has generated a new lead for the company or resulted in a sale.  I’ve been chasing “Likes”, hoping that as that number grows, the number of interested parties seeing our work will also get in touch.  That really hasn’t panned out.  And as I spend time trying to grow the number of Likes, I’m still not going to reach all of those people because I’ll only reach 16% of my fans organically.  Are you kidding me?!?

Alternative uses for Facebook time

I’ve decided to refocus my time onto other marketing activities that I think will be a more direct route to increasing sales...

1.  Website content pages

The Terrapin site is our primary marketing tool, so it only makes sense to spend time here to keep it current.  As our company has grown, our service offering and portfolio has changed and grown, but our site hasn’t kept pace.  My goal is to comb through our extensive site, update the content and ensure that every page is optimized for search engines.  The bottomline is that our website needs to be doing everything possible to generate new leads.  

2.  Email marketing

Our email list has been growing slowly, but steadily over the last few years, so I think it’s time that we put more time into the message that we’re sending out.  We have a direct link to potential customer’s inboxes and have a great open rate, so it’s time to tweak our message to maximize effectiveness.  Generating new content for the website should also provide great topics to promote through email.

3.  Blogging

I enjoy writing, but with so many hats to wear as a small business owner, I rarely allow myself the time to do it.  I’m pledging to double my output and write multiple blog articles a month, each with a targeted focus that’s replete with keywords that search engines love.  

But blogging isn’t just about pushing out content… it will be important for me to read other blogs and create connections across the blogosphere.  Commenting and sharing related blogs for small business and marketing in Rhode Island and Massachusetts will help to get the Terrapin name out there and hopefully build our expertise as one Southern New England’s premiere marketing companies.  

Should you delete your Facebook?

I know that a lot of small businesses across Rhode Island and Massachusetts are probably in the same boat as we are.  Facebook keeps us busy, but is it really time well spent?  For most businesses that we encounter, I do not think that FB makes sense.  But if you can answer “Yes” to any 3 of the following criteria, I think you can tap into the power of FB marketing:

1.  You are a B2C company

2.  You offer a tangible product that photographs well

3.  You have marketing budget to spend on FB advertising

4.  You have time to dedicate to generating content

5.  You have time to build Likes and interact with Fans of your page

Making the best use of Terrapin time

Full disclosure:  I am not going to delete the Terrapin FB page - we’re just going to balance the time that we spend on it as a marketing tool.  It won’t be our first priority in terms of time and money.  It’s merely another tool in the marketing bag that we can use to get our message out.  Our focus moving forward will be creating valuable content that we can promote through all of our marketing channels:  website, email marketing, blogging, LinkedIn AND Facebook.