Facebook tips for business owners

It's been awhile since I last posted. Been considering different ideas for my business pitch -- and it's funny how the more we're learning in the APOC program, the less ideas I seem to be able to come up with. My previous brainstorming ideas are slowly being crossed off, as my knowledge expands for what works/doesn't work..

Luckily for us, Zach's Wednesday class is giving us an opportunity for due diligence. I haven't finalized my idea for the business pitch, but I am taking a step back to look at different platforms. I will be comparing and analyzing tools and resources available to business owners and what they'll need to know in order to arrive at making a business decision. Specifically, I'm going to be focusing on the Facebook platform. 

Facebook is a popular tool for social media, that we already know. It's free and easy for companies to use as voice, brand recognition and for marketing efforts. (More than 20 million people become fans of Pages each day, and pages have created more than 5.3 billion fans overall) However, I've seen companies use Facebook wasting time, effort and money spent on building pages and applications.

Mistakes business owners make utilizing Facebook:

Failure to build bridge with users: People use Facebook because helps manage and makes social life easier for them online. Consider how your Fan Page or Group would benefit your fans/members on a social level. Find ways to cater to the needs of your audience or interest group. Otherwise, they will lose interest and jump to the next page.

Over complicating -- cluttering their page: Keep your fan page/group content simple and insightful. Some companies become self-absorbed talking about their product/service that you offer, filling your fan page / group with promotions and spam. They spend time and money developing fun applications that look visually appealing but irrelevant to their audience. This is prime example of failure to listen and learn from customers. Take advantage from what your fans are saying about your company and use it as feedback. Perhaps you may ask for input on the launch of a new product, or provide discussions/FAQs for people with questions about your product..

Impatience to learn the Facebook culture: Companies think joining Facebook is a quick solution for business success. This could be true, but it takes time to engage, interact, and learn from your loyalists. Don't expect a quick turn around or everyone to become a Fan or part of your Group -- unless you are Apple or Coca Cola. (Even if your company is like Apple and Coca Cola, you need to spend time building conversations around your customers and their interests to learn more about your company). 

Inconsistent voice: A company needs brand identity. Likewise, when utilizing Facebook keep that brand image consistent. Don't try to be professional one day and use slang and act hip and cool the next day. Your voice should be dependent on who your audience is. Conversations should be what interests your customers not you, what's newsworthy, buzz worthy to them. 

Driving offline traffic via mobile technology

On the web, eCommerce sites are trying to reach higher rankings based on keyword search to drive as much traffic to their sites as possible. This trend is catching on offline as well. Retail businesses want to join in on driving traffic to their stores. How will they achieve this?


A new technology called ShopAlerts, powered by a location based startup Placecast are launching a new marketing service for retailers. ShopAlerts allows users to opt-in on receiving text messages in a variety of ways - at the store, online, text-message, mobile websites or on Facebook. When ShopAlerts has been activated, users will receive alerts via mobile on nearby businesses. Using virtual boundaries, targeted consumers within proximity will be able to see sales and special offers at the brand stores. Companies that join ShopAlerts will be able to customize their messaging and alerts to consumers. Some of the current major retailers include: American Eagle Outfitters, REI, and North Face..


ShopAlerts works on both smartphone and non-smartphones, so this comes real handy for fashionistas and shopoholics! Note that ShopAlerts cannot send more than 3 text messages from a retailer in a given week. This said, I assume that a consumer will receive individual texts from each retail store. However, don't worry, if you feel you will be overwhelmed by all the text messages. You may opt-out of ShopAlerts at any time.


We will see how well this mobile marketing service works out. Love the idea! However, one flaw that I see foreshadowing is the age range of people using mobile and how easily accessible it is to opt-in. Once retail brand stores opt-in, I'm sure restaurants and diners will be jumping on the band wagon or demand for a service similar to ShopAlerts for the entertainment, food, and hospitality industry. This will be followed by clubs and bars joining in. Do we really want to market bars/clubs to underage children?


My thoughts are as different lines of businesses join in on ShopAlerts, we will receive separate texts based on different business categories. Either by a difference service provider, or by ShopAlerts (if they expand and customize functionalities for other types of businesses).

Reference: Placecast debuts Location-based Mobile Marketing Technology ShopAlerts