Facebook is a fantastic way to connect with people who may need or want your product or service as well as people who may want to join your business. However, there is a right way and a WRONG way to marketing yourself on Facebook. If you go about this the wrong way it will crush your chances at success.
Here’s a live review of the WRONG way to use Facebook marketing.
Here’s some tips to get it right:
1. Remember, Facebook is first and foremost a social site ~ be social. 🙂 Talk about your life, your interests, post entertaining and informative content.
2. Connect! Facebook really is platform for connection. Which is GREAT ~ because the more you get to know and understand your prospective customer and/or business partner the better your chances of giving them exactly what they want/need is!
3. 80/20 rule. Make sure you’re sharing non work/product related stuff at least 80% of the time. Save the last 20% of your time to post things related to your business.
4. Big tip: use the private messaging system to do most of  your “business”. If you want to send someone information ~ or something specific, never do it on your wall or on a post ~ send them a private message. This way you can talk with them directly as well as not fill in your profile with tons of work stuff. This also gives you a better chance to follow up with the person. If you leave your link on your profile you have no control over who goes to your site, and no way to answer questions or help them out.
5. Be positive. Do NOT NOT NOT be a negative Nellie on Facebook. No one wants to work with or do business with someone who’s always complaining. Even if times are hard try to look at the positive side of things and if you can’t ~ then post nothing. Keep it positive. Always.
I’d love to see what you’re doing on Facebook. Feel free to connect with me I love meeting new people!
Jackie, I agree that this is not a pretty sight, but in a recent blog post, I wrote that Facebook Fan Page marketers are beginning to roll this way. It is almost this squeeze-page unpleasant, but the fact is we are going to see a shift in Facebook fan page marketing.
Only problem is… this wasn’t a page ~ this was the profile. People may start doing this more and more on their fanpages, but I bet they find if it is working at all currently, it quits working very quickly. People don’t come to facebook to be sold ~ they come to connect. period.
Love the 80/20 rule – it’s what we recommend with all of our social media clients – especially on Facebook – but true for Twitter and other outposts as well.
Great stuff!
Thanks for stopping by Frank! always love your input. 🙂
So true. Thanks for discussing this. If you don’t connect with your fans and put out junk they will unlike you. Engagement and getting to know folks is where you build lasting relationships.
Great info about sharing discussions in private messages. I think that is respectful to the other person.
Thanks for stopping by Elian ~ it’s really easy for people jump to conclusions. If you don’t have a way to connect with them and answer questions etc you can really lose people. That’s why I always do “business talk” through private messaging instead of in public. That way I can help alleviate any misconceptions and answer questions. It also allows for the conversation not to “contaminate” anyone else watching the thread ~ not everyone will have the same concerns/issues ~ so best to deal with people personally to provide better customer service.
Great post Jackie thank you for the simple and helpful information, I see we have some similarities on the topic oh and nice blog btw keep up the good work! Let’s connect on FB http://www.facebook.com/angela.soliz1 🙂
I’m sure I wouldn’t stay on a page very long if I saw ad after ad. But I’m wondering how one actually does market on a FB page. I’m trying to do some marketing on my FB page, and not sure at all that I’m doing it right. I’m NOT spamming, though : )
Stay tuned Pastor Sherry ~ the whole month of January I’m going to be focusing on how to market with social media the “right” way. 🙂
I could not agree more with your post. I’d like to actually understand why a person is worth knowing before I’m supposed to jump into a business opportunity with them. It is like the drunk at the party trying to get all the ‘relationship’ part of the deal done in 30 seconds and down to the hotel room right away. Kinda cringeworthy.
Hi Jackie, good video. I jumped to your Facebook page and noticed you are using Timeline. I really like the way Timeline makes your Facebook page look, feel and navigate. Any chance that you are going to do a class on how to set it up and use it correctly?
Also, CommentLuv is giving a error message…something about this version no longer being supported.
Thanks for the heads up on commentluv. I’ll take a look and see what the deal is. Timeline is really easy, and it will be the default very soon. 🙂 I am planning on doing social media posts for the month of January ~ so I might just start off this week with some basics on setting up the timeline. Great idea ~ and I was struggling for a topic this week. 🙂 Stop by Thursday. 🙂
James ~ I put up a post on the basics of setting up the timeline last week… did you see it?