A question I'm often asked by clients is: how many people can I get from Facebook to my website?
However, this is the wrong question, since it`s not only the visitors that a Facebook page can generate, you have to focus on different areas.
When I was asked by one of our customers about what a Facebook Page should bring him, and how they should commit to it, I told them that opening a Facebook Page is like opening a flagship store, and a very busy one.
Facebook is a channel that`s big enough for marketers to focus on. I believe that more people spend time on Facebook then they spend shopping in general, so you have to get your store out there.
I don`t mean that you should immediately go and sell stuff on your Facebook page. Although Unilever, Asos, and others have launched their social media stores, that is not what I am trying to describe.
When you do open a store you hire staff, decorate it and set it up, pay your monthly bills, measure your store results, have a store manager, and do the marketing for it.
When you open a Facebook page, that is exactly what you have to do: have a social media manager managing it (internal or external), have it set-up (tabs, landing tab), measure it, design it, and obviously you want to do via marketing to drive customers to it.
A Facebook page is a commitment that local brands with 50 000+ fans often forget they have. Some forget that store, and many don't even publish news on it. Does this mean they have changed their social media agency, or that their budget ran out?
It can be like walking in an empty store. You open the page, and the last news is coming from December 2009, more than a year ago. This is not a good sign for companies. Companies should take their fans seriously, if there are 5 000, 50 000, or 5m. They should take care of their community on Facebook.
Another example is having tabs and presentation layers from early 2010, when tabs had different sizes. Some companies still have a Facebook page where they have these out-of-size tabs today.
Evian Live Youn - G? - Is there a letter missing? No, Evian hasn't updated the page for a few months...
We can see the level of commitment if we look at the top brands on Facebook, who by now are all managing their Facebook pages and branding them, except for Converse, which doesn't even have a Facebook landing page.
The top brands on Facebook are really taking care of their pages. Four of the 10 have already upgraded to the new Facebook page layout (Red Bull, Disney, and Starbucks, Victoria Secret), which was rolled out on Thursday night, a great sign that some companies can really be flexible on social media. The dynamic approach is the right approach when it comes to marketing on Facebook.
I hope companies will start taking their Facebook Pages more seriously, as not being in touch with your fans is the worst thing you can do.
Reader comments (7)
11:03AM on 16th February 2011
Don't agree with your term : "flagship".
A flagship is a place that you (as a brand) are in full control, that is not the case of Facebook pages. Facebook is the king here, he allows the brand to be at his court. They can change the rules, and brands obey (very dynamically it seems).
I'm not saying that brands should not be on Facebook : of course they should ! But consider a Facebook page as a corner in a department store, not a flagship !
12:15PM on 16th February 2011
Stephane, I totally agree. It is a good place, but with no proper control, so no flagship...
CEO at Socialbakers
1:25PM on 16th February 2011
Stephane, Thomas: I believe its about the opinion, you could use the analogy that a traditional flagship store is in a rental, or under land that can shake up, and noone can stop land from shaking.
Facebook here is much more stable, and is committed to keep brands having full control over their presence!
Social Media Manager at Sisarina, Inc
7:53PM on 17th February 2011
Yes, all brands should have a Facebook Page and yes they should monitor it daily and post regularly, but you don't have to invest in elaborate landing pages and custom design to be successful. Most Facebook users will never visit your Page, and if they do, chances are it won't be more than once. Interaction with pages is primarily done through individual posts in user's news feeds. Instead of thinking of Facebook as some hard and steady piece of retail space that customers will visit, brands should focus on the "flyers" that go out to their fans on these dynamic and always changing platforms.
6:59AM on 21st February 2011
very nice I like it thank you for your sharing
6:09AM on 22nd February 2011
I've been waiting for a feature like this! Yesterday while I was listening to a nostalgic tune from high school I thought to myself, "I wish I could share this with my HS friends on my FB page", and now I can.
Thanks for the update! Looking for more integration in the future.
2:12PM on 1st March 2011
I believe the term flagship is spot on, and has nothing to do with control. If you know what you're doing, Facebook allows you complete control - the thing you have to submit to is structure. In this case, structure is good. Learn to exploit it and in doing so you will learn to market to your target audience on a level that they are accustomed to. Facebook is where your customers live and play; it's difficult to ignore focusing your marketing efforts on a player with over 60% market share. It makes no difference if you're B2B or B2C, Facebook should be your flagship.
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