From its humble beginnings as a student project in 2004, Facebook has had a meteoric rise in popularity, with subscribers spending a staggering three billion minutes on the social networking site every day.

You may already be one of the 175 million plus people using Facebook to connect with friends old and new – but have you considered setting up a Facebook profile to help promote your business?

Using Facebook for Business
Facebook is a social networking site that provides tools and applications (apps) designed to bring people with similar interests together.

In September last year Facebook extended its reach even more by introducing Facebook Pages, which it describes as "a customizable presence for an organization, product, or public personality to join the conversation".

Bringing it all Together with Facebook
The updated Page functionality provides customisable tabs for organising your content. The social networking tools will accommodate publishing up-to-the-minute Twitter-like status updates, videos, blog posts, events and more.

All your Page activity is presented as it happens on the Wall, including any interactive content created by your followers (fans). This works in a similar way to the normal user profile.

Embracing the Pull Marketing Ethos
Using Facebook for business purposes is not about blasting your message out to a potentially massive audience; it's much more about implementing pull-marketing techniques in which you give in order to get back.

The Facebook Page interface is similar to the normal user profile, providing some excellent tools for engaging with customers on a social, interpersonal level.

While social media marketing is more direct than Search Engine Optimisation, for example, it should still be adopted as a long-term strategy.

Using Facebook for Business Effectively
Having other Facebook users follow you (become a fan) is key to your Page being a success. This can be accomplished by a combination of activities:

• Publishing good content regularly
• Seeking out other good content you can link to
• Incorporating your business blog posts
• Publishing product-related videos and events
• Seeking out and joining groups related to your business
• Creating a group in which others can participate with you (and become your fans)
• Using the applications provided to integrate your other social media activities

Key to using any social media website effectively is the amount of time you dedicate to creating and publishing good content, and then interacting with others to build your network.

An Integrated Marketing Approach
The benefits of successfully engaging customers through social media marketing are clear – but it shouldn't be pursued at the cost of your other marketing activities. Your social media marketing activities should be part of an integrated marketing approach, with search and email marketing playing key roles in increasing web traffic, converting sales and retaining your customers.

If you would like to review the effectiveness of your social media marketing activities, please contact us.