If you have not already incorporated Facebook into your online marketing strategies by using advertising and creating a fan page yet, you just might want to do so when you see the statistics of registered users currently on Facebook. Actually I have seen a couple different numbers; one was over six hundred million users and one was over five hundred million. Either way, that is an awful lot of people especially when approximately half of those log in to their account every day and that the "average user" spends almost an hour on Facebook daily. I have to laugh at that statistic when I think of people I personally know who spend well over that. My best guess would be at least eight hours a day or perhaps even more! I am sure you will not be shocked to know that many people sneak on there while on the clock at work too. I can only imagine some bosses' eyeballs growing rather huge at this moment!
With numbers as crazy as those above, plus the well over one million Facebook fan pages that have been created, and then throw in the fact that Google is now using social content in ranking web pages, it really just does not make any logical sense why you would not create a Facebook presence if you are not already actively doing so. To maximize your Facebook fan page (you have one right?!) remember to keep your content fresh and exciting. Give your fans a reason to come back and stop by your page on a consistent basis. You can also integrate your fan page with your other social media sites to increase your results without that much more effort exerted. There is a service called Ping.fm (http://ping.fm) that will update all of your numerous social networking sites all at once, including popular ones like Facebook and Twitter. Set up your widgets for your YouTube channel and Flickr feed to automatically add images and videos to your Facebook fan page.
Facebook fan page walls can be a very valuable tool to communicate with prospects and customers but can be a bit daunting to new people visiting your fan page. So, instead of sending your new visitors directly to your fan page, think about possibly sending them to a more controlled and welcoming landing page where you can give them good information and invite them to become a fan. I came across one example where a shoe retailer that donates a pair of shoes to kids in need with every pair that is purchased, directs new visitors to a nice landing page which clearly explains the company's personal mission. They even have a video there that shares their story and links to important pages and products of course. Apparently their approach seems to be doing quite well since they have over 180,000 fans and growing. Get creative and help your new visitors feel comfortable with you and your business while establishing trust and rapport, and watch your fan page numbers skyrocket.
