I recently attended Facebook Fit in NYC, a summer series hosted by Facebook around the U.S. to help small businesses achieve success. Below are my top five takeaways:
1. Be authentic.
It might sound like a no-brainer, but coming from a place of authenticity can make or break your online influence. Tell a story that is unique to you and own it.
2. Find your customers.
In addition to marketing to your current fanbase, Facebook now allows you to capitalize on customer data that you’ve collected from other sources. Implementing this new targeting feature is as easy as uploading the list for the segment you’d like to reach (email and phone numbers). Facebook will then display your ads to those individuals who are accessible via their platform.
3. Make new friends.
Leverage Facebook’s Lookalike Audiences tool to reach potential new customers. First, this feature creates a profile of your customer base, and then it identifies similar groups of people in your defined location. This allows you to target individuals whose interests mirror those of your existing fans. If you choose to use the Lookalike tool, you will not receive any personal information about the Facebook generated audience.
4. Engage and convert.
Conversions can be defined by a variety of consumer actions including closing a sale, generating a lead, downloading an app and subscribing to a newsletter. Facebook allows users to track conversions by placing a tracking pixel on their website. In addition, Facebook now recommends combining conversion tracking with their Optimized CPM which ensures marketers that their ads are being delivered against their set goals, therefore ensuring effective use of their budget.
5. Own your social presence.
Facebook offers many tools to help your grow your audience, but creating a strong social influence means being active on multiple social platforms. Create a work culture where employees are actively engaging with your brand whether it is checking into Foursquare, posting on Instagram, or sharing highlights on Twitter. Having an environment that allows your employees to be brand ambassadors and advocate for the value of your brand can be priceless when it comes to increasing your reach and adding to your authenticity and credibility.
