Why Your Brand Needs To Be More Visible On Facebook

The numbers are in -- and they're high. More than 800 million users have declared Facebook their digital home and anyone with a brand should be forging it on the social network. Of those nearly billion users, half of them are actively trolling Facebook each and every day, making Facebook the poster child of the old saying, "if you build it they will come." And, apparently keep on coming, with 50 million users discovering the social utility every two months. Additionally, 350 million mobile users log on each day. So, we know the demographic is there, but how can you leverage that knowledge to build your brand? Facebook understands that many companies know it's wise to have a presence, but 25 percent of executives also don't really understand why or how it works to their advantage and only 12 percent of that group thinks the ads are working. Facebook knows this and is actually moving in a slightly different direction that might make more sense to those accustomed to traditional marketing. This week, Facebook executives are executing a campaign during Advertising Week in New York, to promote the social network as a branding medium, just like television. To kick-start this idea, Facebook is providing live coverage of Advertising Week via a video stream on the site - a little subliminal seduction to spur the process forward. Why? The real money is in the broadcast and print budgets that marketers oversee and Facebook wants a piece of that rather large pie. Also unveiling this week is the premium ad product, which is a new ad unit, including additional metrics to measure return on investment, which will give much-needed information to anyone spending time and money to promote a business on Facebook. New ads will also target not only fans of company pages, but also their friends through what is being called social context. Targeting the fan's friends increases your audience by more than a third. That worked for Southwest Airlines, which reported that friends of fans were 165 percent more inclined to check out the company's website, than a user who had no link to the airline. Plus, users who see existing social ads with their friends' names are four times more likely to use the product. That's the impetus behind Facebook's new expanded premium ad, which starts with a traditional ad, but gets bigger to show friends who like the product. It's a plus for anyone seeking to have their brand seen and accepted. It's a variation on the old talking around the water cooler and essential for company marketers. One caution, social media turns on a dime and your campaign can turn against you if your company or brand isn't prepared for new customers. It's still customer service first, technology second. Here are some other tips for better branding on Facebook: 1. Stay connected to your customers even after super building your brand. Some companies have discovered that 10,000 fans are not the same as 2,000 fans, in terms of customer relations. 2. Pay attention to existing community members. Recently, Little Debbie introduced the chocolate chip brownie through giveaways to current followers. 3. Stay focused. Create landing pages that make sense and always issue a call to action, so the customer knows exactly what you want them to do. It's a fast-paced world online and keeping your brand top of mind on Facebook requires aforethought, continual focus on changes and uppermost exceptional customer service once you reel them in to try your brand. Second image courtesy of Shutterstock.

Social Pro Daily

Why Your Brand Needs To Be More Visible On Facebook

If your brand isn't already highly visible on Facebook, you're missing out on marketing to the half billion users and potential customers, worldwide.

Donna Parker

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Donna Parker