Facebook. Are you missing the boat?

From a marketing point of view Facebook can seem like the ideal place to promote your business. Unlike most traditional forms of media, Facebook is bi-directional, so instead of just sending someone a one-way message, you can use it for things like research, brand building, customer service, finding new prospects as well as marketing.

So why aren’t more businesses making more of this opportunity?

One of the major issues is the message. 
Most companies have Facebook pages that tell users how great their product or service is. Which seems like the logical thing to do, but the problem is customers just don’t care. Why? Because they want to relate to your product or service in a way that makes them feel good.

Your Facebook page should be about your customers – not you. 

Here’s a hypothetical example …

‘XYZ’ Cafe wants people to ‘Like’ their Facebook page. So they set up a page that showcases their menu, drinks and opening hours. Would you ‘Like’ your local cafe if they did that? Probably not.
But let’s say ‘XYZ’ Cafe sets up a Facebook page that provides downloadable daily dinner recipes for under $10, including vegetarian, gluten free and low fat options. That would be a lot more appealing.

Or another example…

‘XYZ’ Luxury Cars wants people to ‘Like’ them on Facebook page, so they set up a page that details their full range of cars, mechanical specs and leasing options. Who would care?

But let’s say ‘XYZ’ Luxury Cars sets up a page that focuses on performance driving tips, including regular live chats with a well-known racing driver and video tutorials.

We’ve made these examples up, but you can see what a difference it makes when you shift the focus away from what you do to what your customers can relate to.