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SitePoint Tribune |
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| Issue 434: February 19, 2008 News, Rants and Case Studies for Web Design Professionals | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Introduction
In this week's Tribune, we'll take a closer look at Facebook Pages, a free and easy vehicle to promote your organization to tens of millions of Facebook users. We'll discuss the merits of the different options, and hear from a few Tribune readers about their strategies. Then, we'll delve into SitePoint's large web archives to find some great advice and discussion about this huge social network. There's plenty to learn within those articles. We'll then wrap this issue up by considering other free or low-cost ways of positioning your business in front of your ideal prospects. Many of these are simple to do, and can pay big dividends. I hope you enjoy this edition!
Miles Burke
Summary
Editor's PerspectiveUsing Facebook Pages to Market Your BusinessIn a recent Tribune, I suggested looking at Facebook Pages as a free marketing medium for your business. Love or hate Facebook, it will be around for a while yet, and it's very likely that many of your target audience are already on there. So how do you best leverage Facebook for your business? Facebook have a few tools available for you to use the platform as a marketing medium. Firstly, the more traditional advertising system, where you pay for impressions or actions on text-based and image-based ads. The level of reporting and targeting is advanced; you can build a campaign to target only those who list certain interests (such as small business), or meet specific demographics (females, aged 25-40 in Canada only). Then, there's the simple Facebook Share button which can be integrated into your own web site, popular for content-based services. Then, if you're up for a challenge, you could use the Facebook API to build your own innovative application that works within Facebook. This does require a certain level of development experience though. The one I'm focusing on today, however, is Facebook Pages. The Facebook Terms of Use prohibit organizations to have their own profiles, unlike individuals. Your options as an organization are better served with Pages, which are open to anyone to use. You can create a company page from within your individual profile by clicking on the Advertising link in the footer. By choosing a category, naming the page, and completing a number of fields, your page will be created. You can then share it with others, and they can choose to Become a fan. As people become fans of your organization's page, it appears within their News Feed, revealing to the rest of their Facebook colleagues that you have added the page. It then links the page name with your page, driving more people to click on the link and have a look. This is where your page can win or lose. I suggest that you consider your Facebook page as a micro-site; you should start adding more content to the page, encourage conversation within the discussion board, and ask fans to promote it using the Share feature. Here are a few examples of how SitePoint Tribune readers are using Facebook Pages as part of their marketing strategy. OntarioColleges.ca uses its Facebook Page to share details of events (120 events listed at the time of writing), as well as link their find-a-college program using a large graphic in the center of the page. They have also linked YouTube videos and lively discussion on their Wall and Discussion Board. Janice Henshall from ontariocolleges.ca says "With our fan base steadily increasing, we're hoping that our target demographic (potential college applicants, many who are between 18 and 24 years of age) find it a useful communication tool. Time will tell." Chinese nightlife web site, Zhuhai Nights uses their Facebook page as a promotional tool to drive people to their web site. They have many videos (including fan videos) and photos to build rich content within the page. Mark Clulow from Coos Creations, creators of the site, states "We use the page to generate interest and tell people about events. The most popular feature though, is photo tagging. Tagging people in photos from events we're involved with lets them know about the site, as well as their friends and family -- all in a subtle but effective way. Actually watermarking the photos with Facebook has proven very successful at dragging people over to our site." Chicago web design business, Addicott Web has a Facebook page to market their services to a wider audience. Hirsch Fishman from Addicott has a few great ideas on how to better utilize Facebook Pages for web professionals. "I set up a Facebook page because I wanted to directly market my web design business to everyone I know on Facebook. The vast majority of my clients come through word of mouth, but only a few of these know about my web site. Then there are people where it's been years since I've spoken to them so they're unaware of what I'm up to now. Posting on the Facebook page allows for these situations -- and help fuel the word of mouth and referrals that might come my way. Overall my goal has to been to create a well-rounded marketing piece for Addicott Web on the Facebook page. As much as my web site serves that purpose, if people don't visit, then it's pointless. With so many people on Facebook, it seemed the perfect approach. What am I doing in particular on my page?
The most positive aspect of all is that it's given me a potential service that I can now offer clients as well -- creating and consulting on their Facebook presence as a complement to the web site that I'm creating for them. Being able to offer services like this helps me as a professional, as I can offer clients more than just a web site -- and that's the value proposition of my business." Thanks for your feedback and suggestions, Janice, Mark, and Hirsch. It's great to see businesses using a variety of methods on their Facebook Pages to increase their fan base and interact with audiences. I trust this article has you thinking about how better to market your organization using Facebook Pages -- best of luck with it!
Domain name for only 99c?Powerful and straightforward. Ultra-reliable and cutting edge. Web hosting can be all these things -- and great value for money. 
We have the complete package: Affordable hosting that's easy-to-use and backed by 100% free 24/7/365 support. Get your 99c domain name now! Please note that this for USA and Canada residents only. SitePoint ArchivesIn 2007, David Mytton wrote an excellent article on how to build a Facebook application, in Developing with the Facebook Platform and PHP. This is a great primer for those dipping their toes in this area. In Facebook: Breaking Down the Walls, SitePoint's own Kevin Yank blogs about what the opening of the Facebook Platform means to developers and users of the social network. Kevin then goes on to suggest ways in which Facebook could improve their platform even further. Josh Catone, SitePoint blogger, writes about What Facebook Should Do Next, and suggests opening up its platform even further, and becoming a virtual computer. Josh also penned a post about why Facebook Connect is much better than their ill-fated Facebook Beacon, in Facebook Connect is Beacon Done Right. In this post, Josh explains how Facebook Connect extends the platform beyond the social network itself and integrates it into third party web sites, such as your own.
Tips & TricksMore Low- or No-cost Marketing StrategiesWe've discussed Facebook, but there are plenty of other affordable, grass roots-style marketing strategies you can implement to build your business during lean times. Many online marketing strategies boil down to having the time to work on them. They are often free (apart from the time spent), and so it's a case of setting aside a block of time every week to work on them. Here are just a handful of free or low-cost ideas to help reach existing clients and attract new prospects:
Then there are offline efforts as well:
Best of luck with the above ideas, and I wish you plenty of success!
Don't miss out on Freelancing Success
Email me a free sample PDF now! Thank you for reading this week's Tribune. I'll be back in touch in two weeks' time.
Miles Burke
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The financial crisis will affect many businesses in the coming
months. Many who weather the economic storm will be those who market
themselves effectively online.
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