The Total Social Media Makeover; Why Every Company Needs a Facebook Page

The best way for your business to get your social media house in order is to have a Facebook fan page. A page is the most efficient, and appropriate launch pad for  your business into the social media ecosystem. Think of it as your home base.  The central nervous system of your social media life.  A Fan Page offers your business the ability to stay agile, adding content and commentary. Video uploads, along with photos, RSS feeds and the ability to engage with your consumer are endless. All of this is possible without unloading your entire marketing budget. Having a Facebook fan page for your brand is a proverbial “no brainer.” Facebook continues to innovate page features to help alleviate concerns that businesses may have. Today Allfacebook reported that Facebook will launch a new “email notification feature”

A page is essential because before Facebook launched pages, having a profile for a business was against Facebook’s terms of service . Therefore they’ve essentially created a platform where Brands can have Facebook profiles. News feeds are in real time, and can be leveraged as powerful marketing tools. Think “word of mouth on steroids”. Pages can also integrate multiple applications via simple tabular navigation.

Your tabular navigation may include a Wall, Info, Photos, video, or even custom tabs all associated with your brand. If you create custom tabs that are specifically associated with your brand, you also have the ability to advertise and drive users to that page. Once you’ve launched your facebook application, you can house said application in your business page environment. So you can help your application by promoting installation, and ensuring it lives on in perpetuity.

Starting to see how essential a fan page is for your business?

Once you launch your fan page, you must create content. If you don’t already have an RSS feed of some sort, you should update daily content and repost comments from your fans or you page will be a stale representation of your brand. Allow your page to be almost a “micro-site” within the Facebook social media ecosystem. Have fun with the page, tag photos of users, and leverage the power of your page to promote events. Currently the easiest manner in which you can manage this arduous task is via companies like Buddy Media.

Once again: full disclosure – Buddy Media is my employer.  However that’s no accident. I saw Buddy Media getting “dangerous” and even posted about them before I was hired. I pursued them so I could be a part of this Social Media Revolution.  They’re doing it the proper way, for large brands throughout the online advertising landscape. Buddy offers a fully integrated page management system where you have a centrally located interface where you can manage content, and report on the interaction of your fans with said content. This measurement is where the rubber hits the road for brands. Not only are they getting their social media house in order, but they’re able to track activity and report on interaction. Therefore you have the perfect focus group of users at your fingertips. Conduct surveys, promote events, add humorous details about your business – the options are endless!

For Atlantis Buddy Media provided a vehicle for Atlantis to promote special offers and events, while providing a gateway to the Atlantis corporate website for reservations and further information on Facebook. The program builds awareness among social networks of Atlantic resorts through organic distribution of virtual gifts and multi-media content.  It also provides fans a way to inform friends about their upcoming trip to an Atlantis resort (showing up in their news feed).  They are also able to share photos, video and memories from their last trip.

The Result?

In the first two weeks of the campaign, the Atlantis fan-base increased 3000%, solely through organic growth and many bookings have already been associated with the fan page. This serves as compelling evidence of the power of an interactive and useful Facebook Public Profile built on the Buddy Media Social Page Management System.