Your Mom’s on Facebook... and What That Means for your Business

With nearly 500 million active users, Facebook has become the Internet’s most visited website, surpassing Google earlier this year.  More than 50% of Facebook’s active users log into their account on any given day, spending a staggering 500 billion minutes per month browsing profiles, pages, and groups. I’m on Facebook, you’re on Facebook – yes, even your Mom’s on Facebook. So why isn’t your business?

Five Reasons Your Chatham-Kent Business Should be on Facebook

1) It’s Free

Name another advertising platform that allows you to find, connect, and market to your customer group every day, in real time, for free. A basic Facebook presence will let you do all of this quickly and easily. Simply create a profile for your business using the pages functions, and volia – your company is on Facebook and ready to interact with clients.

2) It’s all about sharing

Facebook is all about sharing – interests, photos, friends, what you’re doing this weekend – anything. According to Facebook’s official statistics, the average user creates 70 pieces of content on the site each month – that’s more than 25 billion pieces of content (web links, news, blog posts, notes, photos) shared per month. Imagine what could happen if you put this word-of-mouth marketing strategy to work for your business. Post your product launches, special events, and sale announcements to your company Facebook page and watch as your fans spread the news to others in their social network.

3) Fans are loyal

According to a study done by Chadwick Martin Bailey and iModerate Research Technologies, consumers who follow a brand on Facebook and Twitter are more likely to recommend and purchase an item or service from that company. More than 1,500 consumers were polled in this survey, which found that 60% of Facebook fans were more likely to recommend a brand since becoming a follower on Facebook. What’s more, an impressive 51% of Facebook fans are more likely than a non-follower to buy items from that same brand.

4) You can customize your presence

A basic Facebook fan page will only do so much for your business. If you really want to engage with your customers you need to create a custom profile. Some companies go all out on their Facebook fan pages, integrating a mini-website right into the layout. There are literally thousands of Facebook applications out there that can help you “pimp-out” your profile, so don’t forget to check them out. Need help? Contact CIK – we can help you develop a page that engages visitors and gives them a reason to keep coming back.

5) You can sell right from your profile

Facebook is a proven marketing tool, but did you know you can also sell items directly from your business page? Applications like Moluko and iDontMind.com have created custom cart applications that allow businesses to showcase products directly on their Facebook page, complete with ecommerce capability. This is a great way to reward your fans with exclusive discounts.

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