Many people know how to use Facebook and how to utilize it for their business. With so many opinions about the “5 Must do’s on Facebook”, or the way to “manage your Facebook account for business”, how are you to know what really works and what doesn’t work for your business?
It is clear that Facebook is a powerful social media tool, in this short blog we are going discuss how you can manage your Facebook account effectively by avoiding these 5 marketing mistakes.
Let’s answer first: Why is it important to not make Facebook mistakes?
Answer: Facebook followers represent an existing customer base usually customers that are extremely profitable because they have found your page and “agreed” to follow you and see your updates. Facebook followers also represent a potential customer base. Even though these are two great things for any business. The caution, don’t make Facebook mistakes, because it can cost you. If you wrong one of your existing followers, they can post a bad review, which greatly decreases your brand value in their networks minds.
5 Facebook Marketing Mistakes to Avoid
1. Setting up your Profile Incorrectly or Incompletely
When setting up a Facebook account, the fields that are given are provided for a reason. When you begin your Facebook page for business, fill out as many fields as you can. This may seem like a common sense step, but it is frequently forgotten. Businesses will set up their pages and be so eager to post content and find new friends that they will forget the basic profile steps. Facebook profile information if similar to your “business card” information.
Remember it is important to set a url for your business page. Picking a profile url such as Facebook.com/CustomerParadigm makes sense for our business. To set a Facebook url go to this page: Facebook URL. You can only change this twice, so be careful what you choose.
2. Posting at the Wrong Time or the Wrong Place
This is one topic that there are many opinions on, some say to post as many times as you Tweet, some say to post quality content so you are not spamming, my thoughts are to post at the right time in the right place.
The right time to post on Facebook? Posts between 1-4 pm E.T. have received the best traction. The best post traction throughout the whole week is on Wednesday at 3 pm.
If these post times are in the middle of your day, you can always schedule your posts to occur at the peak hours of interaction.
The right place to post of Facebook? Posting on your group page is the right place to promote your products and services. You can even get away with posting on your personal page and promoting your business. But, posting about your business on your personal friends page is NOT the right place to post.
Bonus: The right content to post on Facebook? Posting content that is relevant to your business is the right content. If you are a fashion design page, you don’t want to be posting content about the new apple laptops. Keep your content relevant to your business.
3. Posting too Much Text
Posting too much text such that people are not reading your content and simply moving onto the next news feed item can greatly hurt your interactions. A good rule of thumb, is to treat your Facebook text the same as Twitter text, which is limited to only 140 characters about 2 sentences. This is enough describe what your image or link is about, and small enough that someone is willing to read the 2 sentences and move on to interacting with your post.
Posts with less that 250 characters on average receive 60% more likes than posts with characters over 250. Don’t let this deter you from posting valuable information if you have something to say, but, if you are posting and trying to promote an image or a link it is better to keep the text to a minimum.
4. Failing to use Facebook Insights
If you are a marketer, data is your foundation for reason and actions. Failing to use your Facebook Insights is saying that you don’t value free data and what it is saying about your business. Here is a quick guide to understanding Facebook Insights and the implications it means for your business.
Total Likes: This number indicates the amount of likes your group page currently has. The percentage next to it, is the increase in likes over the week. For example if you have 100 existing likes, and you achieve 10 new likes over the week, you could have a 10% increase.
Friends of Fans: This number represents the number of potential followers you could reach. It is similar to an “impression potential”. You have the ability to reach a new customer base through posting engaging content that your follower can share on their wall.
People Talking about This (PTAT): This number is a great indicator of the quality of your posts. For example, when your information is higher quality, users are more likely to interact by liking, sharing, or commenting. With an increase in these three actions, the PTAT percentage increases.
Weekly Total Reach: This number reflects that amount of unique users who view anything to do with your page. This includes your Facebook advertising goals, your group posts and people mentioning your brand.
5. Failing to use your Cover Photo
It’s not too often that a social media platform provides a huge platform to show your greatest products on. Failing to use your cover photo to show off your new products is a huge mistake that businesses make. Yes, it is important to build brand awareness, but it is also important to continually engage your followers on Facebook.
Here’s my rule: If Facebook users have found your page and followed you, give them the products they want to see. They know your brand.
If you are new to your Facebook group page and are not well known, I do recommend using your logo for your profile picture to build brand awareness and recognition. Especially when people are trying to discover your page, and can’t remember your full business name a logo can help you be easily recalled.
Conclusion
Facebook is a powerful marketing tool, but tailoring your efforts in the right direction can make a huge impact. Work smart not harder. Understanding your customer base reach and the daily interaction you can have with your followers is what makes Facebook unique. Avoid making the 5 Facebook Marketing Mistakes and your Facebook marketing strategy will be taking 5 steps toward a healthier campaign.