So far, I’ve been mostly talking about the basic hows and whys of Facebook Fan Pages, also called profile pages. These pages have unique social advantages for marketers and brand promoters, are easy to implement, and as I’m sure you know by now, there’s already a great body of knowledge available online to help you get onto the scene with maximum impact.
I talk about Fan Pages, naturally, because that’s our business here at InvolveSocial. Our Fan Page Application Suite consists of tools that enable you to address one of the major challenges of a profile page: effectively engaging your audience to foster their interaction with – and loyalty to – your brand.
The only other tool that you need is the knowledge to use the applications, and the Fan Page itself, to best effect.
However, with all the information out there from casual and professional bloggers about how to best implement a fan page, from such a wide range of experience and with so many varied methods of addressing the topic, it may get a little overwhelming. So, I’m happy to point you in the direction of what I think are a few really good resources.
To start, here’s a short article that sums up how many businesses are easing into Fan Pages. Useful to note: You don’t need to end up with a million fans for the page to be worthwhile:
However, it is useful to take a look at a few standout Fan Pages (some of which DO have a million fans) to see exactly what they’re doing right. Callan picks big-name brands that already have massive brand recognition helping fill out the roster, but make no mistake: Big brands still need to reach and engage their fans, just like the rest of us (albeit on a different scale, and with a head start):
There are quite a few Top 10 guides out there for Fan Page best practices, and they mostly agree on the basic ideas. Here’s a good one that should serve you well. Take a look at some of Carnet’s other guides while you’re there, chances are he’s got something relevant to your situation:
Here’s a great take on how to engage a fan base. Jeremiah refers to a fan base as a “community,” which is a term that I’ve been avoiding for accuracy’s sake – simply put, not every crowd is a community, even if they talk to you and to each other from time to time. But sociological terminology aside, it is a great way to conceptualize your Fan Page. Jeremiah gives a great list of steps toward establishing your own “community” – many of which I’ve addressed in my own posts, but I definitely recommend taking a look at them:
Finally, Nick O’Neill is known as one of the foremost authorities on all things Facebook. If you know anything about Facebook, chances are that you learned some of it from him. Here’s one post where he details one out of the thirty strategies that he published in his 30 Days to 3,000 Fans e-book. His home page, www.allfacebook.com, is incidentally also worth perusing and keeping tabs on:
Do you have a favorite blogger, e-book, or other resource on Facebook Fan Pages? We’d love to hear who, what and why – leave a comment!
