MGR Facebook Page
Last month, Facebook once again swiftly introduced a new feature that had been highly speculated for quite some time. So much so, that even Google and its investors were a bit nervous about it… and rightfully so. Welcome to Facebook’s Graph Search!
Facebook’s new Graph Search is just Facebook’s first attempt to tap into the Search Engines’ world very much like Google developed Google + to bring an alternative to Facebook’s Social Media dominance. So how does Facebook’s Graph Search work and how can Facebook users take advantage of it?
Graph Search will allow users to search for pretty much anything they want, from restaurants, to car repair shops, old photos, shopping recommendations, doctors, movies, books, and everything else. The unique angle is that, as opposed to a random Search Engine query, Graph Search uses algorithms that tabulate the person’s social connections and interactions with other friends and businesses to produce customized results. In other words, Facebook’s Graph Search will not just answer your query, but it will also provide you with third-party recommendations from your own friends and brands with which either you or them have had some interaction in the past.
As far as privacy goes, according to Facebook “With Graph Search, you can look up anything shared with you on Facebook, and others can find stuff you’ve shared with them, including content set to Public. That means different people see different results.” You can also read how Privacy works with Facebook’s Graph Search here.
If you’re a business and already have a Facebook Page, once Graph Search is fully deployed (currently is in beta version for a few accounts only) the number of “Likes” that your page has will be more important than any time in the past. In a nutshell, more Likes means more interactions with other users which in turn will translate into higher Graph Search results for your page.
If you have been neglecting your Facebook page lately, now would be a good time to get it back into overdrive and put some effort into getting more people to Like it! How can you do that? Here are a few logical tips.
Promote it!
It’s amazing how many businesses have a Facebook page, yet they never promote it anywhere! As if they expect people to find it by some type of spiritual intervention! Add your Facebook URL to your marketing materials (if you don’t have a custom URL go to www.Facebook.com/usernameto get yours), brochures, business cards, of course, to your website, flyers, everywhere! You wouldn’t believe how many people will just be curious and go to your page just to see you, your pictures, your company information, etc.
Invite them!
Many friends and customers will Like your Facebook page if you invite them to Like it. It’s a simple task that only takes a couple of clicks. Chances are, if your customers like you, your business and your brand, they will have no issue Liking your Facebook page too.
Reward them!
Periodically, you can set up Facebook campaigns offering a particular prize, discount or incentive to those who “Like” your page. At MGR, we’ve handled a number of successful and easy campaigns such as giving away a “free” item (related to your business) to a lucky winner selected monthly among your Facebook Fans. You can set milestones –for example: free gift card once we reach 1,000 Likes- and invite your current fans to spread the word among their own friends so they too Like your page. Once you reach the milestone, you announce the winner and set up a new contest with a new milestone. Easy to do and it generates great results.
Entertain them!
So you have all of these new fans and Likes now, but how do you keep them interested? Easy, you just need to keep them entertained. Remember that once they “Like” you, your Facebook posts will automatically appear in their news feed. You don’t want to spam them with 10 posts a day, but one per day or three or four per week will be enough to keep them engaged and interested in what you have to say. But more critical than quantity is the quality of your posts. Write something interesting, unique, something they would like to share, and if you can add an image and make it brief, even better.
So here you go! Promote – Invite – Reward – Entertain. Start with these four tips and once Facebook Graph is fully deployed, your company’s Facebook page will be in good shape!
Until next time, this is Manuel Gil del Real (MGR)
