Does your business know as much about Facebook as it should?
It’s a bit of a shock when Facebook suspends your business page. When you have no idea why, getting answers from Facebook is nigh on impossible and you are losing business opportunities every day.
This happened to a small business in Derbyshire which found to its horror that Facebook had suspended its page for breaking its rules on photos. What rules, you may ask?
Facebook is a complicated beast. Rules on competitions, covers and advertising; complex algorithms which run your newsfeed, hidden features to attract customers. A complicated beast which businesses insist on diving into unaware of the dangers and opportunities.
So how much do you know about Facebook? And do you need to know more to save you wasted time and business disaster? Answer these questions and find out. Answers at the end.
1. Are you allowed to include your website address or phone number in the (cover) photo at the top of your page?
a) Yes
b) No
c) Yes, as long as you don’t say ‘call’, “go to our” or other call-to-action words.
2. How many of the fans of your business page see your page updates?
a) All of them
b) About 16% at a rough guess
c) Hardly any of them
3. Who chooses who you are friends with on Facebook?
a) You
b) You and your friends
c) Facebook
4. How often should you post on your Facebook business page?
a) Once a day
b) When you can be bothered
c) Between 3 to 8 times a day
5. Which of the following types of competitions are NOT allowed on your Facebook business page?
a) “Like our page and you will be entered into our competition”
b) “Change your profile photo to our logo and you could win a prize”
c) “Share this status on your page and you could win some free stuff”
6. When someone complains about your business on your Facebook page, should you…
a) Delete it immediately
b) Debate the issue with them so they see your point of view.
c) Ignore it. Their message will disappear in time anyway.
7. You have a well-designed Facebook business page with lovely applications encouraging people to buy. How often will most of your fans see your page?
a) Once or twice
b) 2-5 times
c) 5 times plus
Answers:
1 a Yes, you are now but you couldn’t in March 2013. Facebook regulations then said your cover photo should not include “contact information such as a website address, email, mailing address, or information that should go in your Page’s “About” section”. Facebook removed some pages which broke these rules. It has since relaxed its restrictions but still says your cover photo cannot contain more than 20 per cent text.
2 On average, 16 per cent of your fans see your updates so (b) could be the right answer but if you’re not using your Facebook page properly, it’s more likely to be much lower. Which makes (c) the more likely answer.
3 c Facebook decides who are your friends, at least they decide which of them are your ‘real’ friends by posting only their content onto your newsfeed. Whose updates go on your newsfeed depends on how you engage with them, if you look at their profile and the types of content they produce. You have little say about it. The same goes for your business page so it’s important to know how Facebook decides who sees your content.
4 c If you want to reach your audience, you need to be posting when they’re using Facebook. That could mean up to eight times a day if you’re trying to reach an international audience.
5 a, b and c None of these competitions are allowed on a Facebook page. In fact, you’re not even allowed to run a competition on your page without using an application.
6 There’s no right or wrong answer with this one because it depends on the nature of the complaint. What is important is understanding the options, how you can use Facebook to handle it correctly and being prepared.
7 a According to Facebook statistics most people will only ever visit your Facebook page once – so you have to work hard to get them to come back.
Want to learn more about how to use your Facebook page properly – and get business? Then click here.
About the author
By Mark Saxby. Mark is one of the directors of Status Social, the East Midlands’ leading social media agency. To find out more about what Status Social does, click here.
Read MoreWhy this photo means you should be on Google+
The image below should make every business realise why they need to be on Google+.
It’s the results of a search for double glazing companies in Derby – a Google search that probably takes place every day. Thousands of times a day with a different location.
I’ve removed the top two paid-for results. The next two are the organic entries – websites which fit into the way Google likes them to look and behave. It is what comes next that shows how search is being changed by Google+.
The next three entries all have Google+ pages – Google tells us that in the search results. The ninth double glazing company listed is also on Google+. Even the other two entries on the first page have Google reviews alongside them. All of the entries are listed on Google local – now a part of Google+.
Nearly all of page one of Google influenced by Google+. And that is why you should be on Google+.
About the author
By Mark Saxby. Mark is a director at Status Social and with his team, has trained more than 800 business people how to use social media to increase their profits. Status Social also runs Google+ accounts for big business. It is also running a NEW ‘Google+ for business’ workshop on May 21 in Derby. For full details and to book your place click here.
Read MoreUK Eurovision failures could result in an independent Scotland
The campaign for an independent Scotland has strengthened after it emerged Scottish people are more likely to experience Eurovision joy if they dump their next door neighbours.
A poll* carried out by Status Social has revealed that people north of the border are more likely to vote to go it alone if they no longer get lumbered with ageing no-hopers like Englebert Humperdinck and Bonnie Tyler.
And Europeans have ALSO revealed they are more likely to give points to Scotland than the ‘roast beefs’ of England.
Tania McVesty, whose mum is Scottish said: “Hoots mon, everyone thinks the Eurovision voters hate the United Kingdom but we all know it’s just the English that they cannot stand. I’m prepared to say ‘yes’ to leaving the union if we can have an independent Scottish entry in the competition.
“It’s just a shame I live in Nottingham so I won’t have a vote,” added Ms McVesty.
Franka Rudolph is a genuine German. She has not voted for the United Kingdom’s Eurovison entry since Scooch in 2007 – and that was only because she misdialled.
“I would vote for Scotland,” she confirmed. “Everyone in Germany loves Scottish music, especially the Proclaimers. Just the sound of bagpipes makes most Germans weak at the knees.”
Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmon said the Status Social poll had given the independence campaign a real boost. “To be honest, I thought we had no chance of winning the vote but after Bonnie Tyler was selected to represent the UK, the tide seems to have turned. This year’s entry is so bad that apparently even the chancellor George Osborne has decided to go against the PM and vote for Scottish independence.”
Eurovision chiefs have not confirmed that an independent Scotland would be allowed to compete in the competition but an insider said: “At least they would do better than the Netherlands.”
* Poll sample audience made up of three people – Tania McVesty (half Scottish), Mark Saxby (1/8th Scottish), Kerry Saxby (eaten Scotch pancakes).
See our Status Social Eurovision infographic.
Read MoreEurovision Song Contest: The Facts You Need to Know
We are big fans of the Eurovision Song Contest here at Status Social. So much, in fact, that last year we (us and the marvellous Pictographik) produced an infographic especially for the occasion. To celebrate the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest, we thought we would dig it out of our archives. Always worthy of another viewing (unlike Englebert Humperdinck’s performance, unfortunately)…
Why should my business blog?
Do you know that businesses which blog weekly are 66% more likely to get customers than those who don’t? Yet so few businesses blog in the first place. It’s easy to see why…
“We haven’t got anything to blog about.”
“We are not very good at writing.”
“We haven’t got the time.”
“Nobody will want to read it anyway.”
Just a few of the common excuses when it comes to why businesses don’t blog – yet the advantages for your business of writing a blog are massive:
It can improve your chances of being found on Google Search engines love changing websites. The more activity on your website, the more chances of it appearing higher in Google. A weekly blog is a sign to search engines that your website is not static. Status Social provided blogs for a tourism website that wasn’t in the first ten pages of Google. It’s now second behind Wikipedia thanks largely to short weekly blogs. Not a penny was spent on search engine optimisation.
It can bring people to your website Your website can’t go out and grab people to make them look at it. Sometimes you need to give them a reason to come. Writing something that will draw people in followed by a strong call-to-action at the end of your blog often leads to increased traffic.
It can give you credibility You may be good at what you do but how do you prove it? Writing a blog is a great opportunity to show that you know what you’re talking about. So when your website gets visitors they can see that you really are an expert because you can write about the subject with authority.
It provides social media content Often the biggest challenge for businesses when it comes to social media is what content to put out on their channels. Your blogs are a wonderful source of social media material, and they can often be promoted via Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, etc, again and again, driving people to your website.
Writing a business blog is an investment. Yes, it will take time but that time is being spent on growing your business. Do you need to think again about blogging?
About the author
Mark Saxby is an award-winning journalist whose blogs have generated more than 90,000 hits. He also runs Blogging for Business workshops. See more details about the workshops here.
How a hotel owner used Facebook to be found on Google
Hotel owner Colin Clark was laughed at by his wife for thinking social media could generate new business. But when Colin saw success through Twitter, she had to think twice. Now the Hilton House Hotel is attracting customers who have seen its Facebook posts on Google. Watch Colin tell his story to Status Social’s Mark Saxby…
Do you want to know how to turn your social media into actual business? Then check out our services or our social media workshops.
Read MoreConnect with us
Listen to our podcast
Each episode will teach you something about social media in under 5 minutes!
