Facebook for Everything

Facebook currently has over 750 million active users, and that number continues to  grow  steadily. According  to  Compete.com,  it  is  currently  the second most popular website  in  the world  (behind  Google) in  terms  of  unique  visitors,  and according to ComScore, the most popular social network overall.

Think your customers aren’t on Facebook? There are tens of thousands of work-related,  collegiate,  and  high  school networks.  According  to InsideFacebook.com,  approximately two thirds of US Facebook users are outside  of the  college demographic, and  users  age  26  to  64  make  up more  than  half  of  Facebook'  US user  base.  While  Facebook  started off  as  a  community  for  college students, it has expanded far beyond that,  and  you‟d  be  hard-pressed  to find a demographic not yet represented among Facebook’  750 million users.

At  this  point,  you have  heard  of  social media  and  inbound  marketing.  Maybe you’ve  experimented  with  Twitter  and checked out your kids‟ Facebook profiles, and  you  can  see  the  value  for  college students who want to make sure they‟re all at the same bar on Saturday night. But why does  any  of  this matter  to  you  or  your business?

Social  media  and  inbound  marketing  are  increasingly  important  assets  for businesses to get found by and engage with potential buyers on the web. Think about  the  way  you  find  information  about  products  and  services –  are  you watching TV ads? Going through your junk mail? Or are you consulting a search engine  or  a  friend?  People  have  gotten  better  and  better  at  ignoring  marketing messages  with  DVRs,  caller  ID,  and  spam  filters.  Instead they  visit Google  and social  networks  for  answers  to  their  questions.  The  question  for you  is,  will  you be there to answer it? Facebook  is  not  an  evil  time-waster,  a  community  just for younger  generations, nor is it irrelevant for marketers – even B2B folks.

Rather, Facebook is a tool for connecting  people  with  those  around  them.  And,  as  with  any  social  media  tool, marketers  have  an  opportunity  to  use  Facebook  to  expand  their  online  footprint and directly engage with customers and prospects. But yes, it can be difficult to figure out what you can and should do. And yes, it can  be  quite  a  feat  to  convince  your  CEO  to  let  you  incorporate  Facebook  or  a larger  social  media  strategy  into  your  marketing  plan.  But,  armed  with  the  right knowledge and metrics, it is possible.