Facebook lessons

With 27 million users logging in up to 14 times a day, Facebook is a social network all businesses should take advantage of.

I recently attended a Facebook Bootcamp for SMEs. The event aimed to ‘make your business stronger’. So here’s what I learnt about using Facebook for business:

You’re going to have to pay
First things first; you’re going to have to spend money on paid-for advertising to make this platform work for you. Facebook doesn’t make it easy for businesses to be seen without sponsored updates and ads. However, the network promises that if you’re willing to spend a little you will be rewarded a lot (and from my experience they aren’t fibbing).

Test, test, test
Don’t splash your cash on one week-long paid-for campaign straight away. Spend money in small chunks over a month to see what language, creative and content works.

Target
Facebook offers pretty impressive targeting options. This gives you the tools to find people of the appropriate age, gender, location or interests. To drive sales you need to use them.

Interesting content isn’t obtrusive
Using a social network to advertise isn’t obtrusive if you offer interesting and valuable content your followers will enjoy.