NOVEMBER 18, 2010

Can You Check Off All of These Facebook Must-haves for your Business?

There are many options of which to take advantage in the world of social media, Facebook being arguably chief among them.  But just being on Facebook isn't enough -- you need to be doing everything possible to maximize your presence, otherwise your customers might just pass you by.  

Take a look at this checklist to see if you still have additional opportunities out there:

1.  You're using a Facebook Business Page (rather than a Group or Personal Profile). 

Don't even go the Personal profile route.  First of all, it's against Facebook's terms to do so.  Second, you have to manually add each and every friend, rather than just letting them passively connect to you by clicking the "Like" button on a Business page.  Also, and just as importantly, profiles are not indexed by Google's search engine.

As for Facebook Groups: 

  • Groups also do not get indexed by Google or other search engines; Pages do --> you want this to help pull your business up in online searches
  • Groups will not allow you to have a vanity URL; Business Pages do (after you get 25 fans) --> see #2
  • Groups do not give you access to Facebook visitor statistics (a.k.a. "Insights"), while Pages do (after you get 30 fans) --> see #5
  • Group messages do not appear in News Feeds as Page postings do -- a critical element -- only as your email messages, which can be easily ignored or deleted.  To see a Group's page postings, your customers would have to proactively go visit that page, an unlikely occurrence.  Page postings can also appear to those fans' networks, giving you more eyeballs.
  • Even small details matter: Groups do not allow you to group photos by albums, while Pages do 

2.  You've assigned your business a vanity URL.

You want to make your Facebook address easy to communicate to your customers.  So simplify it.  Go to www.facebook.com/username while logged in to your business' account and follow the straightforward instructions there.  Claim your name before someone else does.

3.  You're updating regularly.

Putting up a post every 5-6 weeks isn't going to cut it.  When your customers go by your page and see that no one's doing anything there, it has the look and feeling of a store where the doors are locked, the lights are out and everyone's gone home.  So light it up.  But of course, don't just post garbage.  Make your information useful and worthwhile.  See #4.

4.  You're mixing up your posts.

Too many business make the mistake of posting the same information over and over and over again.  Your fans will become numb to this approach.  Mix it up and keep it interesting.  Add photos.  Share behind-the-scenes news.  Call out job openings.  Highlight your best employees.  And to be frank, offer deals.  40% of all people like a brand or business on Facebook for access to special deals.  Make it worth their while.  Finally, be interactive.  It's "social" media, not one-way media.  Encourage dialog by asking questions and responding to what visitors are posting.  See #7 for more on this one.

5.  You're regularly evaluating your Facebook Insights data.

Especially once you've built up a statistically significant number of fans (at least 100-200), you can start mining Facebook data for interesting insights that will help you refine your communications.  Find out the age and gender of your fans.  Learn where they're coming from geographically-speaking.  Discover what postings of yours they respond to best.  Adapt accordingly.

6.  You're putting critical information in your Info Box.

Just underneath your business' profile pic is the Info Box.  In here, you should be listing links to make it convenient for your fans.  Your web page and your Twitter account or Foursquare page are a few examples.  A brief statement about what makes your business tick is also extremely helpful.

7.  You've updated your posting filters to allow your fans' comments to appear as well.

Many business make the mistake of not allowing everyone's posts to appear on their Wall out of fear of seeing messages up there they'd rather not be visible.  While these kinds of messages are counterproductive (especially those spams), they do tend to be rare.  And there's always clicking the upper-right "X" to remove a particular post.  But the important thing to remember is that the best part of social media is that it is in fact social.  Let your customers know you're listening, even to the complaints.  It shows you care, you're open to feedback, and best of all, that you respond to it.  Future customers will see these threads and understand that your business is much more than about simply making money.  Show that. 

8.  You've listed your Social Media presence on your website's home page.

For many websites, having your visitors stop at the home page and moving on to other sites is not at all unusual.  So you need to have all of the critical information up there, beyond your business' contact info and hours.  Having links to your Facebook page will encourage others to discover you there and help build up for fan base.  And it doesn't hurt that search engines love to see respectable cross-links with other web pages as they decide who should appear higher on search result pages. 

* * * * *

Of course, there are many other ways to leverage Facebook for your business, but these are definitely must-haves to help you maximize the time and effort you're putting into this particular tactic.  Beyond those listed, think about what options would be best for both your particular industry and what will help you reach the goals you've established in the short and long term. 

We'd be happy to discuss your specific needs further.  Contact us or start by taking a look at our Social Media packages.

 

SEPTEMBER 20, 2010

Steve Hungsberg, owner and principal of Toque Consulting, is a guest judge at the "Taste Exposure & Culinary Challenge" event, along with Brad Matthews from the Culinary Institute of America, and Dale Miller, Certified Master Chef.

 

JULY 2, 2010

Steve Hungsberg of Toque Consulting, is quoted in an article from The Business Review on how restaurants can take advantage of social media tools like Facebook.

http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/stories/2010/07/05/story3.html

 

APRIL 26, 2009

Toque Consulting announces a new set of Social Media packages designed to help restaurants make their first entry or seasoned social media restaurants get a helping hand.  See the Social Media Packages page for more details.

 

JANUARY 29, 2010

Steve Hungsberg of Toque Consulting, is quoted in a report from The Business Review on dining out in the Albany region.

http://albany.bizjournals.com/albany/stories/2010/02/01/story5.html

 

DECEMBER 8, 2009

Steve Hungsberg, Principal of Toque Consulting, will be speaking at an American Marketing Association event on January 28, 2010 at the Desmond Hotel & Conference Center in Albany. 

 

NOVEMBER 15, 2009

Toque Consulting, as seen on the front page of the November 15, 2009 edition of Albany's Times Union Business section: