The Value of Facebook for Small Business
Statement:
Despite its consistent evolution, Facebook is still primarily a tool for connecting family and friends, allowing people to stay in touch without actually being in touch.
Response:
While this is still most users' primary use, the value Facebook can deliver brands of all sizes is undeniable. In this piece, I will focus purely on the benefits to small business, as the popular perception is that effort can outweigh return in this area. However, this view is often driven by metrics that, while important, don’t always reflect the real situation. Below are three reasons to establish a brand page on Facebook.
It’s where the most eyes are
Facebook was the first social media platform to reach 1 billion active users per month. While other platforms continue to grow on a daily basis, Facebook remains the largest and, therefore, has the greatest potential audience for your brand.
The personal can drive the professional
Family, friends and colleagues will always be the biggest and most enthusiastic supporters of your professional efforts. This gives you a fantastic foundation on which you can grow your brand’s Facebook community. By having those closest to you act as advocates of your brand, you immediately open the door to each of their communities. This type of organic growth is the very definition of social networking.
Grassroots or global - target your audience
Facebook’s advertising platform allows you to target customers at any level, developing location and keyword specific campaigns for as little as a dollar a day. This type of inexpensive advertising, that can be geographically unrestricted, is much more appealing than more expensive, traditional marketing methods. How else could a business in Melbourne target customers in London, spending such a small amount of money?
It is important to note that Facebook brand pages must be managed differently to personal pages when it comes to content. Therefore, in my next feature, I will at look at the content creation process and introduce techniques to build an engaging narrative that both personalises and promotes your brand at the same time.
Until then!
Eric
