Why would I want to use Facebook and other social media for business?

Facebook IconIt's a question asked by many business owners. What does Facebook have to do with business? Why would I spend all that time just socializing when I have a business to run?

All good questions. I've been asking around, reading and listening to folks who are committed to marketing their business using Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. I've come away with several key ideas that really address this question.

  • Technology has changed how people react to advertising.
  • The social media numbers are too important to ignore.
  • People will do business with whom they know, they like and they trust.
  • Referrals-which come from people who know, like and trust you-is a powerful form of marketing that brings qualified leads directly to your doorstep or website.
  • Social Media can dramatically increase the number of people that know, like and trust you.

Technology has changed how we react to advertising

Technology has dramatically changed how we react to advertisements that come at us in all directions. We now have the means to actively avoid most advertisements and we do.

I rarely watch live television anymore. I almost always record a program, then fast forward past the commercials. Online, pop-up blockers keep intrusive ads out of site and out of mind. Our phones, media players and subscription radio and music services provide ad-free entertainment almost everywhere. Newspaper circulation is crashing and virtually all advertisements must now compete with an increasingly fragmented attention span.

The point here is, we avoid or block marketing that we don't ask for.

By contrast, we freely interact with business and products with which we have an interest. I subscribe to several forums, blogs and email newsletters for products and services that are important to me. I asked to be given information that is of value to me.

When I was shopping for a new TV, I visited several online forums populated entirely by people who had or were thinking of buying a similar product. To a great a extent, these were personal testimonials or referrals (good and bad) related to these products. These sources carried a level of trust that an advertisement would never have.

I also ask for product updates and announcements for selected products that are important to me, such as software programs, gadgets like my book reader, my car or updates from a neighborhood restaurant.

I'm not blocking these communications. I've invited them in!

This has been called Opt-in marketing, Invitation Marketing or Inbound Marketing. Contrast this to advertising that is intrusive, unwanted, or simply ignored.

The social media numbers are too important to ignore

As traditional advertising is losing its dominance, online communities and social media are growing by leaps and bounds. Consider this:

  • In January 09, FB had 150 million active members per month.
  • In July 09, that had jump 250 million.
  • In August, it jumped another 50 million to 300 million active users per month!
  • The fastest growing segment is over 35 years of age.
  • There are more than 300,000 business pages on Facebook
  • 100,000 of those are small businesses.

What does this mean? Your customers are on Facebook. This also means your competition is on Facebook!

People do business with people they know, like and trust.

People do business with people. Relationships matter. Will you do business with people you don't know? Perhaps. How about people you don't like? Probably not. And someone you don't trust? Never! Relationships do matter.

No wants to hire a contractor who doesn't return your calls or an appliance repair technician that is a jerk. In contrast, You're more likely to hire a tax accountant that has demonstrated her expertise in tax law or a mechanic that never surprises you with his bill.

Cultivating trusted relationships with people can only benefit your business.

Referrals--which come from people who know, like and trust you--is a powerful form of marketing that brings qualified leads directly to your doorstep.

Referrals are like gold. They come to you pre-qualified. They have an interest in you or your product. They have asked someone else they know and trust and have acted on the referral. It doesn't get better than that!

Social Media can dramatically increase the number of people that know, like and trust you.

Social media pull all these ideas together. Put simply, social media is about socializing, making new friends, getting to know each other better and building trust. Think of it like a conversation at a party or social gathering. You talk to your friends about things that you both find interesting. You make new introductions between friends, discover new interests in common, share ideas and talk shop. As long as you are likeable, honest and trust worthy in your interactions, your reputation and your personal network grows one person at a time. All pretty familiar stuff right?

Facebook and other social media tools work just the same way except they act as a multiplier of those party conversations. Facebook enables you follow and participate in conversations with all your friends and colleagues at the same time. They all can hear what you have to say and you can hear all they have to say. Whether it be about the kids just starting soccer practice or new business ventures, you are interacting with your entire network. All your friends are updated simultaneously. You don't have to wait until the next time you see each and everyone of them.

Now, consider that your friends have friends. If one of your friends says to you that they love your new products, all of their friends will see it too. Since they are friends, this information about your product comes to them from a trusted source. Someone they know, they like and trust, just mentioned that they like your products or services. So let's do the math. If you and all of your friends each have a 100 friends. It takes only 10 of your friends to say something about your products to reach 1000 people (assuming there is no overlapping friends). And that's just the first tier of friends. Remember your friend's friends also have 100 friends.

Pretty amazing right? It gets better. This cost you almost nothing-just a little time chatting with your friends. Add to the fact it's virtually free, you have reached 1000 people that have some level of interest in your business. A referral from these folks will be interested, pre-qualified and ready to do business with you.

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Special thanks to Pamela Muldoon, Networking & Marketing Strategist for Next Stage Busieness, who has conducted several workshops on using social media for marketing your business. She is an outstanding resource for any business that wants to leverage the power of these amazing tools. Here's her contact information.

http://facebook.com/nextstagebusiness
http://nextstagebusiness.com
http://www.facebook.com/pamela.muldoon