If you’re a Facebook user then you probably are a fan of a few Facebook pages (I know it is officially known as “Like” pages, but I refuse to succumb to their vagueness. Long live “Fan” pages.) Lately, I have noticed a few of my favorite Fan pages doing some great things and others, some annoying things. So I’d like to talk about a few of the good things and vent about some of the bad.
Current Events – Tell me what’s going on and why it’s important. I think it’s great when my wife comes home with news from work, the Audubon Zoo, and I already know because it was posted on their Facebook page. Facebook is a great to get the word out and fill last minute openings/promotions.
Have a Personality – One of my favorite Fan pages is the Demo Diva (a local woman-owned demolition company). Saying the Demo Diva brand has a personality is an understatement. The company is built on the diva attitude with pink dumpsters and a pink excavator all around New Orleans. When you read the Demo Diva’s posts, you feel like you’re talking to the owner Simone. They brand and Simone are one in the same and this stays consistent throughout each post from pictures of current projects, tips about demolition, and company news including naming kittens founds on a jobsite.
Stay Consistent on the Personality – If you’re brand is a company and you always talk in the third-person, you can’t jump to a first person viewpoint. On a recent post, a local non-profit went from talking about different services and events to saying she thought something was too cute not to post. At first glance, I thought I was reading someone else’s post. This confusion breaks the brand consistency and makes me want to skip the next posting.
Rewards – It is great when companies/brands have Facebook only promotions as a reward for following the brand and reading their posts. Something simple like 10% off or a Fanpage member only event goes a long way to building brand loyalty and word-of-mouth-marketing.
Too Many Posts – Most of the time, I think 2 posts a day is the limit unless you have a very active Fan page with lots of events, promotions, and new items. Also, space the posts out. When a Fan page posts 3 items in a row, usually they all get skipped. I wish you could automatically space them out like Twitter, but I’m not aware of tools like that for Facebook.
Spell Check – Kind of obvious, but spell things correctly, especially if you’re marketing your brand as the expert in the industry. If you’re a rap label or a brand that appeals to <16, you may be able to get away with intentional typos if they continue your brand.
Well in summary, have a personality, reward your fans and don’t annoy your fans with too many posts. Stay try true to your brand and post as if you had to read it. Check out our Facebook Fan page at http://www.facebook.com/designtheplanet.
