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Hello everyone, welcome to another Digitize Your Firm webinar – with me, Stephen, your host! Today we’re going social by talking about using Facebook like a pro!
For anyone joining us who is a social media expert or for those who are just starting out, I welcome all comments and questions, simply click the green speech bubble at the top of the screen to open the chat and either type out your comment or ask to speak. If you haven’t already, be sure to click the ‘phone’ icon next to it the chat icon to ensure your audio is connected.
As with all Digitize Your Firm webinars, this will be recorded for later playback in case you wanted extra time with a certain section or for listening on the go. If you haven’t already, please visit the Weekly Webinar Schedule on our Digitize Your Firm page to check out our past webinars.
Now, let’s go over today’s agenda.
We’re going to start off today with targeted marketing, then talk about how you can use Facebook groups. We’ll finish with our 50 Facebook tips along with our review and teaser for next week.
One of the real gold mines of Facebook for an online marketer is the ridiculous amount of demographic information that is collected. Because Facebook gathers so much demographic statistics about its users, they have one of the best-targeted advertising programs you will ever see. You can target users based on virtually anything you might find in their profile, as well as track your success with each segment.
You can also set up ads to run on a per-impression or per-click basis depending on your needs and budget. Facebook displays what your bids are for ads similar to yours, so you know if your bid is similar with others in your industry. You can also set daily limits so you don’t blow up your credit card.
Types of Facebook Ads
There are a number of ad subtypes you can choose from.
You can create ads that direct to your Facebook page, or to a site not on Facebook (ie. Your company website or landing page). You can also create ads to promote a Facebook event, complete with an RSVP link. Ads can be created for FB groups and applications, too. Again, similar to every other part of Facebook marketing, if you can think of it, Facebook offers it.
Users Can Rate Your Ads
Other than event-related ads, any ad you run on Facebook will include a “like” button (naturally).
If a user clicks on the “like” button, it increases the effectiveness of your ad. If your ad is being run for a Facebook business page, then clicking on the “like” button automatically makes that user a fan of your page, and adds an update to the user’s profile, further promoting your page. I am sure after reading that, you can see the potential a paid ad can actually have. It also ups the pressure to write sharp copy and use an engaging image.
Facebook users can also close ads they don’t like, and then specify why they didn’t like it. This is valuable information, providing insight into why your ads might not be doing very well.
Powerful Targeting Options
As already mentioned, Facebook has some of the most powerful targeting tools of any online advertising program.
You can target using virtually anything stored in a user’s Facebook profile. If you want to base your target on location, you can specify either city or country, which works particularly well for local businesses. From there, you can choose basic demographics, including gender, relationship status, age, birthday and the likes and interests they share on their profile.
Example: Say, that you have a product that’s targeted at home cooks. You could enter cooking in the Likes & Interests field. The other big advantage to highly-targeted ads is that you can create different ads for different demographic groups. The better you target your ads, the better the results.
Do you know there is another way to market yourself on Facebook? Just as with LinkedIn, Groups can be a great resource for getting your name out there.
So – why Facebook Groups?
Facebook Groups are a great way to build and foster a community around your company and products. While groups are generally much less commercial than pages, there is always room for marketing and promoting. The advantage to groups is that they can encourage discussion and participation better than pages in many cases. If you can build a dedicated group of followers who are active with their opinions, you have a built-in feedback machine for your organization.
We recommend creating a group based on the industry or niche your company is in, rather than about your company. See what groups are already active as well. If they are similar, join the conversation and attract new fans to your group.
Fostering Discussion
The backbone of any successful group is an active discussion with new topics being added all the time. Again, this is just like a forum, though less organized than most online forums. Discussions can be started by any group member, and any other member can then comment.
Until you have a large enough group, you will probably have to start the conversations with a question or piece of information. Once you have an established group, it will take off on it’s own. That is where you become a moderator.
Discussions will always require some moderation and care, especially when it relates to your brand. It is a good idea to have a clear set of content policies prior to starting your group. Make sure you post those policies where all your members can see them. You will also want to moderate the discussion boards to make sure the group is not being overrun by spammers or even competition trying to steal your fans.
Best Practices for Group Messages
Groups have the handy feature of allowing you to send bulk messages to all of your members at once. It works almost exactly like email marketing, allowing you to send members messages similar to newsletters. You can also send messages to highlight certain discussions that members may be interested in. This keeps everything nice and organized.
As someone who is a member of many Facebook groups, be wary of over posting or you may get marked as a spammer. Although group members are not physically giving you their email address, they will get annoyed by hearing from you too often. Also many people choose to get email alerts when new messages are posted, so keep that in mind as well. Don’t just send them advertisements for your products and services. Focus on value and what will keep their interest.
Joining Groups
As mentioned earlier, creating and managing your own group can be time-consuming. Once you add that to your actual Facebook page, other social accounts and your actual day-to-day work, you will never leave the computer. You can also join groups related closely to your company niche and interact with potential fans there as well.
Joining other groups is a great strategy for building company and brand awareness but many groups do have very strict spam policies. You have to be genuine with your postings and not just a salesperson dropping in now and then. If the group admins see you posting commercial content all the time, they will ban you from the group at worst, or just delete the rule-breaking messages at best. If you do this, you are wasting time and damaging your brand to potentially a large group of eyeballs.
When joining a group, be sure to check out what the policies are before posting commercial content and if you run a group, you should include similar policies in your own group as well.
We’re not done yet – now it’s time to giving you 50 tips that will help take your Facebook marketing to the next level.
We wouldn’t be doing our job if we didn’t collect the best ways for you to rule on Facebook, generate leads, stay relevant and most importantly, attract new customers.
Check out our 50 top tips listed below!
1. Place Facebook widgets in prominent places on your website and email marketing campaigns.
2. Write engaging blog posts that offer a new spin on your niche topics.
3. Personalize your Facebook page with company info – don’t rely on the default settings.
4. Don’t forget to add @tag to your posts.
5. Post articles that are only available on your Facebook page.
6. Ask your customers how to improve your products.
7. Promote an event using SimplyCast’s Facebook app creator.
8. Add a Facebook “like” widget to each blog or article you post.
9. Regularly post to your wall. Three times/day is a good rule of thumb. (Morning, afternoon, evening).
10. Encourage new fans to like you by launching a contest with irresistible prizes (your products are the obvious choice!).
11. Expand your Facebook page to include products, categories and job postings.
12. Read comments posted on your Facebook page.
13. Don’t forget to add a complete company “profile”.
14. Ask more questions than posting static content (engagement is the root of Facebook success).
15. Ensure that your content remains fresh, keyword-rich and relevant.
16. Don’t forget to promote your “offline” store.
17. Include your Facebook feed on your website.
18. Listen to what you’re customers are talking about.
19. Run Facebook-only contests.
20. Mix up your posts: throw in picture-only posts or videos.
21. Monitor your Facebook success (and ROI!) through the included Insights.
22. Encourage fans to upload and tag photos of them with your product.
23. Link your Twitter account to your Facebook page.
24. Produce and post a short welcome video on your Facebook page for your new friends and potential customers.
25. Allow fans to be able to sign up for your email or SMS marketing campaigns.
26. Invite your customers to join Facebook through your email marketing campaign and website.
27. Interact with more than just your customers on Facebook – try industry leaders and clients.
28. Don’t fall into a posting rut – be unexpected, unpredictable, something that drives interaction.
29. Conduct simple polls and online surveys to gather quick information about your customers.
30. Advertise your business on Facebook with targeted ads.
31. Report comment spammers to Facebook and delete those posts.
32. Take advantage of all 12 tab slots. Maybe include Pinterest?
33. Ask your customers to submit names for your new product.
34. Give a prize to the winner who submits the chosen name.
35. Recycle posts that generate the greatest number of comments and debate.
36. Post content that’s easily sharable instead of being a selfish product push.
37. Encourage Facebook engagement through your company’s blog.
38. Use Facebook automation sparingly; keep a human touch to your page.
39. Ask your fans about what they’d like to see in your email marketing campaign.
40. Design your directed landing page as if it’s an advertisement.
41. Ask your guest bloggers to write Facebook-only content.
42. Use the 80/20 rule: 80% of your time on Facebook needs to be spent reading comments and responding to questions and 20% for all the rest.
43. Set up a personalized, “vanity” URL for your Facebook page.
44. Welcome new fans and friends with a personalized shout-out.
45. Create a separate fan page or group for a product launch.
46. Post content with mobile viewing in mind (more people are visiting Facebook through smartphones than desktops).
47. Answer your top customer service or product questions in your posts.
48. Cross-promote your different online sites in posts.
49. Add your Facebook site to your email signature.
50. Make your timeline picture clear, high quality and big.
That’s a lot of tips eh? We’ll don’t worry, we’re about to recap.
1. If you’re looking to do powerful advertisement targeting, look no further than Facebook. Not only can you create a large variety of ads, from articles, to video, RSVPs, and more, but you can drill down the audience you want to hit.
If you’re in the business of selling homemade dog food to owners who want something special for their pups, you could target anyone over a certain age range who has ‘dogs’ as a like or interest on their Facebook page, or if there is a certain page they like.
Don’t forget that users can also rate your ads too, so keep an eye on likes and comments when you send your promoted message out into the wild.
2. Another fantastic marketing feature on Facebook is groups. Groups not only allow you to create dedicated discussion spaces for customers or members of your industry, but allow you to share and comment on resources and needs. For example, you could join a group dedicated to emerging tech startups in your local city and discuss recent studies, comment on and congratulate flourishing businesses or even offer your services or products of they require them.
This way, you can foster your company’s engagement in the local community while networking with other professionals who could provide valuable insights.
3. When it comes to tips for using Facebook, we gave you 50 that may help you on your conquest to conquer Facebook. Keeping these tips in mind, pick three or four you think would most help your business and start experimenting! Have a contest offering a great prize for people who share a post, share content relevant to your industry to break up a product-centric feed, or connect your Facebook page to your other social media channels.
The opportunities are endless, so have fun and experiment with different ways you can engage with your audience – your audience will thank you!
Next week we’ll be talking about one of my favorite forms of digital marketing – SMS marketing! We’ve already touched base on this topic, but we’ll be doing some advanced learning for next week. We’ll learn about what SMS marketing is as a refresher, before going over how you can get started and initial tips for strategizing.
