You look at some Facebook Fan Pages that seemingly started just a few short days or weeks ago that are not only surviving, but are actually thriving. They are full of discussions, photos and funny or witty comments. You wonder to yourself…I have a Fan Page. Why isn’t my page acting like that? How come they can do it and I can’t?
If you are looking for free tips or advice on how to approach your social media, go to Social Media
We get requests from prospects every day from folks who ask us to optimize what they are doing with their Facebook Fan Pages.
As most on the internet have found out by now, the best customer is the engaged customer. Your Fans on your Page/Group (or “like”) have come to you voluntarily to say they are supportive of your goods and services. Ultimately, it is a statement about your brand. Social media is about engagement and that means conversation. So, your job as the admin is to get folks involved.
To start with, take into consideration the span as well as the velocity of the conversations going on. When you look at folks who’s Fan Pages are thriving, you will see some remarkable similarities.
Here are 4 tips to getting your Facebook Fan Page engaged:
1. Talk less and listen more! We are good at the first part (talking)…no so much the latter. If you are an admin for a page, your job is to add to the conversation. If you are dominating the discussion, people are going to turn off and quickly disengage. Think about the insurance sales person you met at the last party you attended (sorry but it has been my experience) and how they acted. Don’t be that guy! The result is fewer fans in general and less crazy advocates of your product or service.
Believe it or not, your job is to be informative and not to be in a full court sales mode! Think about that the next time you are on your page.
Action item: Go to your page, click on Options/Settings and be sure to select “All Posts” for Default View of Wall. You don’t want to miss or overlook some great comments.
2. Be a conversation starter! Do what the big boys do! Bring in someone who is respected in your niche and provide a venue for questions and answers. This is easier than it sounds. Because when you ask someone to do this, their ego and vanity almost always makes them say yes. You will need to do a bit of promotion to let folks know, but you should reap some dividends as well as being looked to as a person of authority in your niche. “If you want to be an authority, hang out with those that are” Your ability to do this demonstrates that.
Another approach is to ask for their opinion. As we have come to learn on the web, there are no shortage of those and that is very likely to get folks engaged without you having to dominate.
Keep in mind that this does require regular followup. Don’t expect people to become all engaged when you only visit your site several times a month to get back to folks. You should be visiting and answering questions daily!
Action item: You might find a “sponsor” for this type of forum. Don’t be afraid to ask someone to sponsor parts of your blog or Fan Page. You would be surprised of the results…especially if they can see folks are regularly engaged and visiting often!
3. Match content and promotions! You can accomplish this through what is called surrounding conversations! This is a great tool that you can use to get folks attention in a non overt way. As such you are part of the conversation without distracting or taking over the conversation. You see this in more places than you know.
Let’s say that you are going to have an expert come in and do some Q&A within your niche. What if you had a few simple banners to let people know of an upcoming class or promotion that deals with the same subject? You have inserted your message where people are coming that relates to your message. By doing this, you are letting visitors know you understand their interests and what they are talking about.
Action item: Do you have a product or service that you can promote during one of these events? Don’t expect a huge return on this (but don’t be surprised if you are highly successful either). What this does is build awareness of your brand or service and your event just solidified that with your audience.
4. Show appreciation! Never forget who got you to this point. You may have 100 or hundreds of thousands of fans. But guess what? If they don’t feel appreciated or feel like they are nothing more than a wallet, they will not only disengage, but they will turn elsewhere. So, be humble and acknowledge those who take the time to write on your fan page.
Action item: Take a moment today and thank people on your page. Tell folks both as a group and as individuals that you appreciate their support and their business. Post some photos and tell people of how you feel about them.
Your takeaway from this post…
Think of your Fan Page like a cocktail party. You don’t hide behind a corporate brand when you go there. Don’t do it on your page either by hiding behind an anonymous post.
Remember social media and fan pages in particular are about the conversation. There is more than one way to get everyone involved. Look at what your overall objective is in this space and with your marketing in general. That will help guide your actions.
At the end of the day, this is an action that takes time to be successful. If you can’t give it the time it requires, get someone who is qualified to do it for you!
Are you interested in how to use social media in your business? Don’t know where to start or which sites you should be using for your business?
Believe it or not, not doing social media right can actually harm your business.
If you are looking for free tips or advice on how to approach your social media, go to Social Media
