I had the pleasure of speaking with Matt Hicks, former Social Media Manager with Facebook. As you can imagine, Matt is full of insight into how brands can better use their Facebook Pages to connect with audiences with the goal of developing relationships. This interview followed Matt's presentation on “Thinking Beyond Likes” – it's on SlideShare, so you can check it out.
Below is the video interview, which is also available on YouTube (while you’re there, check out other great segments!).
Highlights from Matt's presentation:
- People spend 27% of their time on their news feed. The feed gets 45-150x greater impressions than the brand’s Facebook page (ComScore analysis).
- A “like” is like a handshake – it’s fleeting. The conversation and demeanor that follows helps determine one’s impression.
- People are at the core of content that gets shared. When you get ready to post something, ask yourself “Why would anyone be interested in this?” Think about whether you’re helping solve a problem, shed light on an issue, or highlight someone doing remarkable work. Sure, there’s probably a marketing reason to post an update. But how can you make it more relatable and genuine?
- Establish a personable style and tone of voice for the page. Say what needs to be said in as few words as possible (a link to a longer-format blog post or an uploaded video can expand on the topic). Include a specific call to action (“What’s your opinion?”) to prompt people to publicly share their opinions and experiences.
- Openly encourage members to tell their own stories, both on the page and off. Be a connector, a facilitator.
- Consistently update your page. Research suggests that with each recurring day of posting, you may experience incremental 2.5% greater fan reach.
- People don’t expect outrageous or monumental content all the time. Page updates can correlate to the weather, seasons, holidays, events, news, or issues common to the group.
- Remember that you can issue messages to targeted lists from your brand page. How can you increase relevancy an interest by drilling down?
- Take note that individuals can block 3rd party publishing apps like Hootsuite and Tweetdeck. If you exclusively post from a 3rd party app, you may find you’re reducing your reach.
What are your best tried-and-true tips for growing a brand community on Facebook? The comments are yours!
Yes, ongoing engagement is critical, which is why http://www.fashionade.com/ allows users to share their personal outfits with the products being recommended to their network.