In the eyes of Facebook, is there a “right way” to build a page?

Why did you start a Facebook Page?

Are you trying to increase the number of “Likes” on your Facebook page and converting them into sales?

Businesses often have different reasons for having Facebook pages. Some hopes to gain sales leads. Some wishes to push products information. And simply like to understand more about their customers. But at the end of the day, I believe the purpose of social networks is really about engaging and having meaningful conversations with your customers.

Instead of building their Facebook page into a living, breathing social centre, many businesses are simply using it as another broadcasting platform; constantly sharing product promotions and information without having any meaningful conversation with their customers.

But there are a few advantages of engaging with your customers on Facebook instead of just broadcasting information.

Customers who Engage = Brand Champions = Word-of-mouth

Engaged customers are much more valuable as compared to those who joined simply for a contest or to receive promotions from you occasionally. Especially with all the numerous reporting about the drastic drop in Facebook’s organic reach (here is a research by Social@Ogilvy), it is clear that using your Facebook as a broadcasting platform isn’t going to cut it for customers.

By actively engaging, I meant when customers are genuinely interested in what you have to say; leading them to actively browse your Facebook page daily.

And it is precisely through such meaningful interactions that your customers will evolve to become champions of your brands; accelerate sales grow through amplifying authentic word-of-mouth, and gradually help you spread your brand among their friends.

So to start it off, you will first need a significant number of fans to take note of your Facebook page and here are a few methods:

Create Facebook Engagement Campaigns

Contests, Offer Claims or Goodwill campaigns are also great ways to promote your Facebook page to your prospects.

Here are 9 tips by the social examiner on how to run successful Facebook contest.

1. Determine whether you really need a contest
2. Decide which type of Facebook contest help you reach your goals
3. Familiarise yourself with Facebook’s Policies and Guidelines
4. Choose a Third-party app to run the contest
5. Pick a Relevant prize
6. Keep it simple
7. Tell the world about your contest
8. Consider Facebook Ads
9. Finally: Don’t forget to follow up!

Or you can take a look at how a Goodwill campaigns can be organised via Cesar Millan Singapore Live 2014 Facebook page.

Promote Engagement

After attracting a substantial number of your customers to your Facebook page, the next step would be to transform it into a living and lively social centre. By doing so, it will help keep your customers engaged and connected to your brand, empowering them with the passion to help proliferate your brand.

And here are some ways to achieve that:

Roll out AMA (Ask Me Anything) Campaigns

Ask me anything is a social campaign that gained popularity quickly on Reddit. It is a unique interaction opportunity for your audience to know more about your brands through asking all sorts of questions.

If you are not sure how it works, here are 15 of the Best Reddit’s AMA from Buzzfeed for your reference.

Previously, AMAs are only used by brands whose target audiences are Reddit users. But with the introduction of threaded replies on Facebook in 2013, marketers are suddenly empowered with the tool to hold their own AMA on Facebook where most of the world are familiar with.

Here are also some tips here on how to organise an AMA well.

1. Tackle an issue that your customers wish to know more or care about.
2. Or get a well-known personality related to your brand that your audiences are crazy over
3. Timing is crucial. Hold you AMA at a time where most of your targeted customers are free.
4. Let your customers know weeks beforehand so they can save the date!

Organising an AMA provides your audiences additional talking point about your brand as compared to campaigns like sweepstakes or offer claims. It also helps your audiences to connect with your brand and understand it at a deeper level.

Vary The Type of Facebook Post

Now try to imagine. How do you and your friends usually post on Facebook? Sharing an interesting video? Talking about interesting things that happened at work? Or posting amazing pictures that wow you?

If these are the kind of posts you make on your wall, why should it be any different when it comes to posting for brands? In other words, your customers don’t want to to see only promotions or details of your products; they want to know more about what is happening at your workplace too!

Thus, I believe brands can use Facebook posts to show their human side and make it more approachable and friendly instead of using it as another broadcast platform to disrupt your audiences with an endless promotional material.

Reward your Facebook fans

Reward your audiences for interacting with your Facebook page. Arms them with reasons to visit your Facebook page daily.

Here are some ways in which you can do that:

1. Provide exclusive Facebook-first news – reward your fans by giving them first-hand news before any other news outlets get it.
2. Hold exclusive Give-aways – reward fans who check your Facebook page regularly by giving away time/quantity-limited offers

Conclusion

Today’s businesses are too enamoured with the number of fans that they have and failed to see that having a large fan base does not equate to having a successful social media platform.

Your social media efforts only truly shine when your fans are willing to actively engage with your brand; sharing all the things they love about your brand.

Trying to create a social hub out of your Facebook page may be a daunting task, but by experimenting and being sincere to our audiences, we will definitely reach there one day. Hopefully, by then, we no longer have to depend on paid ads. Hopefully.

Here is an additional infographic by Mari Smith on how to get more shares to help you further with your engagement mission!