Facebook Marketing: It It Still Relevant?

So, Facebook has been around for more than a decade. Thousands of useful apps have been created since then, most of them, industry specific. Is Facebook marketing still relevant you may ask? Statistically speaking, a jaw dropping 1.7 billion people access Facebook every month, and that's just an approximation, the figure could be much higher than that depending on the time of the year. Out of every 5 minutes spent on mobile, 1 minute is spent on Facebook. So if you're the kind of person who bases his marketing schemes on statistics, then the odds must make you tingle all over at the prospect of increasing your market value. However, statistics are what they are, and at the end of the day, you ought to consider Facebook advertising from a wider perspective. Target Advertising The real beauty of marketing your products or services on Facebook isn't really in the odds, but in target marketing. Adverts are directed at a particular demographic and tailor made to respond to certain browsing behavior. The technical 'behind the scenes' input that goes into it is a story for another day, so for now, just be happy to know that your ads will fly in the faces of people who would most likely be interested in you. Advert Format Telling your story has never been easier. As you create your advert, you will soon realise how many colorfully beautiful options and formats are at your disposal. So if being spoilt for choice is your strong suit, then it should be heartwarming to know that there are different types of adverts, i.e photo ads, video ads, carousel ads( slide show format for images) and the canvas ads. To top it off, the adverts are not device specific, thus making them extremely accessible. The Proof Is In The Pudding What's the point of advertising if you aren't getting noticeable results, right? Increased sales might be an indication of some kind of progress, but sometimes it's hard to tell what really made it happen. This is especially the case if your using various advertising media. Facebook has advertising report tools that are both visual and easy to read. Facebook is here and it's clearly here to stay. Take advantage of this platform to effectively advertise your wares and services.

More

Ways to Invigorate Facebook Advertising

As Facebook has continued to evolve over the years, merchants will need to do more than simply create pages and update them regularly in order to reach their audience. A number of business owners have hence become frustrated because their efforts don't seem to generate enough return-on-investment or leads. But one doesn't have to throw in the towel yet; there are several techniques that could help one spruce up their Facebook advertising to start generating strong leads.

Images

Like on most other social media platforms, Facebook users love visual imagery. Digital merchants therefore need to start making the most of infographics and photographs if they want to remain relevant. This especially applies to those whose ads lean more towards copy as opposed to images; switching up the look by cutting down on the words would let the image speak for itself. The key point to keep in mind is that Facebook isn't really designed for hard sales. As such, more people will be attracted if one uses subtle ads that showcase the brand while acquainting users with various benefits of the product(s).

Focused Ads

For the average small enterprise, most of their audience comes from the local community. These are local residents who come to the establishment in search of specific commodities or services. Advertising to local would therefore make more sense compared to devoting efforts towards advertising to demographics located far outside the locality. This would not only help build a strong foundation, but also encourage support from the community. And because one focuses on a single demographic, their ads will be more targeted and precise.

Split Testing

Some merchants are completely unaware of what their fans want. This situation arises when one gets stuck to a single type of ad that worked in the past but has now gotten stale. When one finds themselves in such a situation, doing some intense split testing would provide crucial information for future use.

This would allow one test out specific aspects of the ads to find out which ones work best for the audience. One is therefore able to constantly change their ads to suit the audience's preferences so that their campaign remains dynamic and appealing. Regular split testing is vital for Facebook advertising; one needs to make it part and parcel of their marketing habits.

http://www.red-orbit.com/services/facebook-advertising

Benefits and Tips of Facebook Advertising

Getting the word out about a new product or service can be challenging, with a few existing customers. Even if those customers tell all their friends and family, reach is limited. Facebook advertising presents a unique opportunity to reach people around the world. Friends have friends, such as business contacts and distant relatives, across the globe. They can easily share and add positive comments about products or services they have tried, or think someone else may want. Many entrepreneurs advertise on social media.

 But, they often leave out important information, such as contact and ordering information, or how to reach the seller. The first tip for anyone promoting a product or service on Facebook, is to make sure potential new customers have a way of reaching your business and know when to call. A second tip, is to add pictures and descriptions. Facebook users can upload, add, and delete images as new product lines become available or as the seasons change. This is an advantage for those promoting seasonal products and those who frequently have new inventory. Join a local/regional group. Many user groups on social media target and allow individuals, within a specific geographic area. This is important for those who need to specifically target local markets. Users within the group can also share any products or services they think friends may be interested in. Joining a local user group is a good way to introduce new products and pique interest of users. Some tips for avoiding certain actions include refraining from putting a competing product or company down. This looks unprofessional and may turn away potential customers. Some users in the group have room in their budget to try multiple brands or products. It's ok to let customers try your products or services, and those of a competitor.

 Be available to answer any questions potential buyers may have. Make sure you can respond to negative comments quickly, in a positive, constructive way. Don't engage in personal attacks, even if a user seems to be goading you into it. Take the high road and remain professional. Many potential customers will see your professional demeanor and will not be diverted away from what you have to offer.

http://www.red-orbit.com/services/facebook-advertising

The Benefits of Facebook Advertising

Advertising creates awareness of the existence of your business to the clients. With a majority of people on Facebook, it is norm to make it your advertising location. Facebook advertising has a number of benefits for your organization. First, there are lower costs associated with this kind of advertising as opposed to advertising on television, radio stations or print media. The business can also post as much information as possible without worrying on extra costs for extra words. The frequency is also increased since you do not have to wait for the next day for the advert to appear in the newspapers or wait for an opening in the local radio station.

Therefore as a business, you are bale to disseminate information more quickly but also at a lower cost. Facebook advertising also ensures that your business has a variety of options for advertising. You may use text, images or videos to pass on the message. What this means is that you will be able to appeal to a greater number of users. There are those who like reading more than listening to someone else say the same thing. These will be covered by the test. Images and videos make it easier for your target audience to remember what the product is all about. Therefore you can make a lasting impression. You are not limited on the number of videos or images to use and therefore you can post as many as possible but ensuring that you do not overwhelm your clients with the amount of content they have to keep up with. Striking a balance between the use of text, images and videos is the best way to reach out to a greater number of people. It is easy to evaluate the work done by the marketing team with a proper Facebook advertising strategy. In addition, you may be able to tell the rate of conversion of the high traffic on your Facebook page to sales within a given period. This may be hard to tell with other forms of advertising.

Interacting with the client for example is one thing that you can achieve with Facebook advertising. They may tell you where you are doing well, where you need to improve on and what they expect from you as an organization. This will ensure that you keep up with the changing consumer needs on a daily basis and therefore keep ahead of the competition. If you have not yet started advertising on Facebook, you should. It will help you achieve the long term growth you are looking forward to.

More

Learning From Facebook Community Management

Practicing favorable habits is something that each and every person does on a daily basis, but this is not often something that they are aware of. When you have strong feelings for someone that you have developed a connection with, you probably are much more willing to give them the benefit of the doubt in an endless amount of situations. As you probably know, love can often be something that allows people to focus on the most positive aspects of a person that they care about.

Taking advantage of this willingness to practice these habits is something that you must be able to do as a company. Effective facebook community management would ensure that you begin to benefit from positive feelings that consumers may have toward your company. People currently spend a significant amount more time in front of their computers than they do at nights clubs or just about any other social setting. If you want to have this become something that you can use to your advantage, it is very important that you make an effort to have a powerful presence online. However, achieving this may not be something that you have an understanding of how to do at the moment. Meeting people where they are and taking them along on a compelling ride is not something that you have to overthink, it would be best to go with a simple approach. Sparking discussion and ensuring that people are able to communicate about the things they enjoy would be the key.

 The importance of facebook community management would be that you are going to begin providing an enjoyable experience to people that are interested in connecting with one another. When you are able to make this into something that is fun, you will find that it is going to become a tool that you will rely on for many things. Polling a community can be an effective way to discover opinions about recently released products and anything that you may have coming up in the near future. Starting the discussion and keeping the community in check would be all that you need to do.

The value of community management

While the field of community management is still relatively new to many, it has quickly proven its value to many businesses. Some business managers are still stuck on whether or not investing in community management is a viable decision. It starts with understanding what community managers do. Community managers play different roles depending on your industry. They are often the first in line to help your customers understand and engage with your business thus helping to drive sales, retain customers and grow your brand.

 Growth 
 The community manger's role is crucial in getting people not only to your community, but actively involved in it. This is why you will see community managers searching relevant topics, terms and or keywords to find blogs or forums to comment on, questions to answer or networks to participate in. it's also common to find a manager using various social media platforms to have conversations with potential customers.

 Engagement 
 Community managers are also responsible for humanizing your brand by connecting with customers. This is commonly referred to as engagement and can be carried out in several ways. Some of the methods include creating, sharing and or distributing relevant content; facilitating introductions within the community; monitoring forums, answering questions and replying to threads. 

Listening 
 Also referred to as measuring, your community manager will listen to feedback from users and social media metrics to carry out a community evaluation on a regular basis. The process may involve measuring the brand's social media analytics; asking users for feedback, either by polling or directly; speaking directly with users, whether via email, social media, on phone or even in person. In measuring, the manager can also monitor the community's online presence by checking whether your business comes up when current or potential customers are searching.

 Improvement 
 Technologies and companies are quite dynamic in this day and age. Evolution is crucial in any community. That said, your community manager should be building on the listening phase to ensure your community is not left behind. This may involve monitoring industry trends and competition to determine what they are doing better, how they are doing it, and how this information can be used to improve the community.

Facebook Advertising – Image Types and Finding Them

The most critical aspect of Facebook advertising is the image. You may come up with the best written ad copy, but if the picture isn't top-notch or at least holds a candle to the text, you are unlikely to garner clicks. As a rule, never go with poor-quality, stock, or any image you don't have rights for usage. Never steal Google images and stay away from logo embeds unless you are a recognized name/brand. Now, let us focus on the kinds of images that work best.

 i) People Pictures of people work well - especially if it's a close-up shot of an individual who represents your niche audience the best. The age of the models can vary depending on your target group. If you're catering to retirees, an image of a 25-year old girl will turn out irrelevant. Ensure the images are in focus - not dark and blurry. Besides models, you may also feature your employees or any other stakeholder that's behind your business - of course, with their due permission.

 ii) Typography Readable, clear picture types could also entice clicks. Bright background hues would help the text stand out. Similar to text copies, put in a question or highlight a user benefit. Treat the image text as your copy extension.

 iii) Hilarious Funny or crazy pictures (like memes) certainly attract more clicks. But don't use them just for the sake of usage. Moreover, conversion rates with funny images aren't that great, even with descriptive advertisement texts. If you use these kinds of images, keep the budget low and monitor ad performance closely.

Creating Images There are options to find the right images: buying them, finding the already licensed ones, and creating the pictures yourself. There are several sites that sell stock photography. However, don't go with stock images that look their part. In other words, no pure white backgrounds or generic images, please. If you don't have the budget to buy images for your Facebook advertising campaigns, there are images available for free, licensed by Creative Commons. However, these need to be credited back in a format specified in the usage license.

More information