This is third in a series on how businesses can utilize facebook for marketing/advertising. We began by looking at facebook pages. Then we moved on to looking at groups. Finally today, we look at a comparision between pages and groups

The Similarities:

Both groups and pages offer the ability to create discussions as well the ability to post photos, videos. Both have walls on which to post. Both allow you to create events. Both require you to manually remove posts as an administrator if something does not meet your standards or purpose for the page. Messaging members is available on both.

The Differences:

Groups :
Can send messages to member’s inbox inviting them to events or alerting them to something of importance

Easier to send mass invitations to join.

Facebook Pages:

Visitor statistics (insights) – free, regular, detailed updates on the growth of the page are provided.

Fan pages are visible to unregistered people and are thus indexed, but to interact with the page, the user must be a Facebook member.

Allows the addition of extra applications – to view available applications, visit http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/apps/directory.php

Actions are documented – If a fan of your page takes action on it, such as writing on your wall or posting a video, their actions will be documented on the news feeds of their personal pages. Their friends will see the news feeds and if curious, check out your page – giving you more exposure

Offer vanity URLs

Facebook Page or Group?

So which is better to promote your business, group or page? Generally speaking, pages are better especially if you want to interact with your fans/customers without having them connected to your personal profile. But the common denominator for both groups and pages, is the need to update regularly, keep your audience engaged and offer something of value.

For more on how to utilize social media, click HERE.

Last week, we looked at using fan pages or just pages as they are now called, to establish a presence for your business, product or brand. But would a Facebook group be a better choice. Let’s take a look at Groups to see what they are all about.

Facebook groups can be created for just about anything. They typically are meant to foster group discussion around a particular topic area, cause, or event, or interest. Group pages are linked to your personal profile. Like pages, they are easy to set up.

Steps:

To begin, go to the Groups application and click “Create a Group” in the upper right corner of the page. On the following page, you will be able to add descriptive information about your group. All groups require a group name, description and group type. Click “Create Group” when you are finished. And that is it. Very simple

Next, add a picture – To be easily recognized as a business, you should choose a logo or storefront as your photo.

Select your group’s privacy settings. These settings can be changed at any time by clicking “Edit Group” on the group’s main page.

Why Groups make business sense:

Administration – As the group administrator, you can easily send messages to group members, making it easier to communicate with them about your business. However, there is a limitation of 5,000 members.

Facebook Groups are searchable by keywords. This makes them easier to find easier to find by Facebook users.

Allow you as the administrator to send out bulk invitations and any of the group members can invite friends which is an effective way to quickly market your business or product.

Allows you to post information about your business or product – Of course, engaging content and encouraging interaction among group members will make your group more attractive.

To create a group, sign into your facebook account and then go HERE

For more on how to utilize social media for your business, click HERE.

In the past two weeks we have discussed both Pages and Groups as a way to market your business on Facebook, next week we will compare the two to see which is thought of as the most effective marketing tool.

Lately, the most popular question is, “Are you on Facebook?” Mark Zuckerberg, Founder of Facebook, launched his networking site as a means to connect with friends at Harvard. Little did he know the incredibly popular Facebook would reach nearly 200 million users, with a million new members joining each week in the U.S. alone. So it should come as no surprise that the ability to use Facebook as a business tool wouldn’t be far behind its application to stay in touch with friends.

Are you ready to utilize Facebook as a way to establish a presence for your business, product, or brand? Start by establishing a Fan Page or Group . This week, let’s look at fan pages.

Getting Started:

Name your Page – be sure to choose a name your customers will recognize.

Upload photos – A logo or storefront works well. This helps your page to be easily recognizable as the business or product you are featuring. Make sure the image is still clear when reduced to thumbnail size.

Add basic information to the group or fan page such as links to company site, newsletter subscription information and newsletter archives. Then go back and add more detailed information such as brand or product information, photos of your products and helpful links.

Make the content engaging: Post upcoming events including webinars, conferences and other programs where you or someone from your company will be present. Add helpful information and answers to questions on a regular basis.

Once created, use the “suggest to friends” button to begin to build your fan base. More fans increase interactions and more interactions increase News Feed. Facebook will accelerate the rate at which unknown entities become popular, and it will also fortify the position of those who are already recognized highly among users. All businesses and brands have the potential for exponential distribution if they can engage users.

Other helpful tidbits taken from Facebook Help Center for Fan Pages:
“Facebook allows page administrators to build merchandising, ticketing, and download applications, or to use those provided by 3rd party developers. On the canvas pages of these applications, they may choose to run paid 3rd party advertising pursuant to the Platform Terms of Service. The off-network website of any artist, business, or brand may be linked prominently on any Page, so traffic can be directed to an external monetizing site”

“Powerful reporting and insight tools are provided free to Page Administrators. On a cumulative and week-over-week basis, these granular reports will measure reach (e.g., impressions, clicks), viral impact (e.g., fan adds), responder insights (e.g., gender and age), and engagement (e.g., video plays and wall posts) of visitors to the Page. One advantage of using the applications designed by Facebook is the ability to receive these free, regular, detailed updates on the growth of the page.”

“Your Pages will be publicly viewable, so people searching for a particular artist or company on the Internet will find the Page’s Facebook presence and be able to view that Page’s photo and basic information. In order to view a Page in its entirety, become a fan of a Page, and engage with a Page, the individual must join Facebook.”

Fan pages offer you the chance to be creative and show your personality. Best of all, they are an incredibly effective way to do viral marketing.

To create a fan page, go to http://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php

For more on how to utilize social media, click HERE.

Next week, we will look at Facebook Groups and how to use them for business purposes.

Who are they?

Friends of the U.S. Chamber is a respected, influential network of Americans who are committed to ensuring our economic strength and making a difference.

How did the U.S. Chamber of Commerce come into being?

Here is an excerpt taken from their home page.

“The idea of a national institution to represent the unified interests of U.S. business first took shape when President William Howard Taft, in a message to Congress on December 7, 1911, addressed the need for a “central organization in touch with associations and chambers of commerce throughout the country and able to keep purely American interests in a closer touch with different phases of commercial affairs.”

Four months later, on April 12, 1912, President Taft’s vision became a reality when a group of 700 delegates from various commercial and trade organizations came together to create a unified body of business interest that today is the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

In 1925, construction on the Chamber headquarters was completed on property that had belonged to Daniel Webster and the U.S. business community made it a rallying point for promoting and defending free enterprise and individual opportunity.

Nearly 100 years later, the Chamber has grown to represent more than 3 million businesses, nearly 3,000 state and local chambers, 830 associations, and over 90 American Chambers of Commerce abroad.”

Why are they important?

They tackle such issues as financial regulation, energy and the environment, health care, legal reform, economic, and labor.

Orange County business owners, are you involved in your local chamber? How about the California chamber? The U.S. Chamber? Get involved today!

Chris Brogan, President of New Marketing Labs, says “We really can’t deny the fact that businesses are testing out Twitter as part of their steps into the social media landscape. You can say it’s a stupid application, that no business gets done there, but there are too many of us (including me) that can disagree and point out business value”.

Here is a snippet from his blog post 50 Ideas on Using Twitter for Business

1. Twitter helps one organize great, instant meetups (tweetups).
2. Twitter works swell as an opinion poll.
3. Twitter can help direct people’s attention to good things.
4. Twitter at events helps people build an instant “backchannel.”
5. Twitter breaks news faster than other sources, often (especially if the news impacts online denizens).
6. Twitter gives businesses a glimpse at what status messaging can do for an organization. Remember presence in the 1990s?
7. Twitter brings great minds together, and gives you daily opportunities to learn (if you look for it, and/or if you follow the right folks).
8. Twitter gives your critics a forum, but that means you can study them.
9. Twitter helps with business development, if your prospects are online (mine are).
10. Twitter can augment customer service. (but see above)

We here at Orange County Advertiser want to hear how you are using Twitter for your business, what is working and what isn’t. Chime in!