10 Facebook Don’ts for Business

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There is plenty of advice out there from digital marketing and social media marketing professionals about how to optimize a company’s Facebook presence. What we see on many business pages are mistakes that companies seem to make. So rather than tell you what you should do, here are 10 Facebook don’ts for businesses.

1. Don’t open a business account on a profile page. You can create your own personal profile page and promote your business that way. But if you open a business account on a profile page, it’s against Facebook policies. Profiles are meant to represent an individual, and if you create a profile for your business, your account may be disabled.
2. Don’t talk AT your audience. Social media is about conversation, and all good conversation is about allowing people to enter the conversation. Too many businesses still use Facebook primarily for self-promotion.
3. Don’t use Facebook as a broadcast channel. Businesses like to use Facebook for routine group broadcasts. That’s a mistake because people don’t sign up to your business page to be broadcast to – rather they want an interactive experience. However, that being said, you can create a live broadcast with integrated chat on Facebook.
4. Don’t prevent conversation. The whole reason for having a Facebook page is to have your fans participate. Make sure your settings allow maximum posting ability.
5. Don’t delete negative comments. You want your fans to think they have reasonable freedom of speech when they come to your page. The best part about negative comments is that it gives you an opportunity to really talk with your customers – and demonstrate to them that you actually care what they have to say. You may even learn something.
6. Don’t create empty tabs. Facebook makes it possible to create a number of different sections to your business page. You can create branding pages, landing pages, as well as discussion and multi-media pages. Unfortunately, many companies don’t make use of their tabs, and this can only leave their fans wondering why they offered empty pages. (The example below comes from a real company page with the name of the company crossed out. If they don't have any upcoming events, why is there an events section?)
7. Don’t forget it’s a fan page. What is it about fans that make them different from others? They want to cheer for the home team. That means they want something to cheer about. Many companies create posts with little personality, or with information that does not enthuse. Come up with something fun to read. Reward their loyalty with sneak peeks of upcoming products or services. Create a competition. Give them something to talk about.
8. Don’t over post. Remember where your posts go – to your fans’ Facebook walls. What they don’t want to see is every other post on their walls coming from your company. That’s not why they use Facebook. So be considerate. Don’t be spammy, no matter how many conversations you want to start. More than one or two posts a day is chancy.
9. Don’t do it alone. Often one person is put in charge of Facebook, and that person does it all – the posts, the comments, etc. Keep in mind this is not a personal profile page, but a company page. Make sure lots of people from your company participate on your Facebook page. Your biggest fans are often your employees, and if they are a part of it, they will want to tell their friends as well.
10. Don’t forget to promote your Facebook pages wherever, and whenever you can. As we’ve said many times, Facebook should be a part of an integrated online marketing optimization plan. Make sure there is an easy way for people to connect to your business page by having the Facebook buttons and links on your email signatures, your web pages, your print ads, your t-shirts, your billboards, your social media press releases, and anywhere else that makes sense.

With #10 in mind, if you haven’t become a fan yet of ymarketing’s Facebook page, what are you waiting for?