By Amanda Watkins, Marketing Communications Manager at InteractOne
After releasing more newsfeed algorithm updates a few months ago, Facebook has recently released new video features that have Facebook marketers drooling with opportunity. The new ad-supported feature is set to attract more video content while sharing revenue with content creators. With the new beta features attempting to rival YouTube, we’re curious to see how this plays out for Social Marketers and businesses on Facebook.
Most importantly, will these new features be worth your time and your precious marketing budget?
It’s no secret that Facebook has become a tricky and difficult platform to utilize for business marketing. When the social giant released newsfeed algorithm changes last year, it changed social marketing on the platform for good. Facebook claims the changes are set to protect its users from company page garble, but was it just their own innocent marketing plea to claim more corporate paid ads? Who really knows other than Zuckerberg but everyone has their own opinion.
Some opinions were made quite clear.
When EAT24 shut its page down back in March of this year, the marketing section of the internet went crazy.
In addition, EAT24 says they got some serious shade from other marketers in the industry, with most spouting that EAT24 was too cheap to pay for the marketing. (Ouch.) EAT24 responded with, “The fact is that we’re totally willing to spend money (on stuff that works). In fact, we poured $1 million into Facebook last year. No joke”
$1 million: That’s a lot of marketing moolah.
Speaking of moolah, Veritasium noticed some interesting things that happened when they spent theirs on paid Facebook marketing. Spoiler alert: thousands of fake likes and no organic interaction.
EAT24 isn’t the only one closing Facebook shop. Corporations, especially B2B companies are also forgoing the company page. In an article from Zapier.com, marketing strategist Gregory Ciotti explained why his company deleted their page:
“In a nutshell, our stance of Facebook is that it doesn’t offer enough of a return for a B2B company like ours to warrant the time spent,” says Ciotti. “It isn’t all that great for customer service, and frankly, it’s better to funnel people to a single channel when you have a small team.”
Ciotti echoes a lot of the same concerns we hear from clients and feel here at InteractOne.
Is Facebook “worth it?” Cue Shrug.
Facebook is an interesting beast. On one hand there are 1.44 billion monthly active users which is prime real estate for marketing and sales. On the other hand, it has become quite difficult to effectively reach desired audiences, even with their pay to play strategy.
Bottom line: When it comes to Facebook, companies really have to do what is best for them.
Are you a B2C company? Is your audience on Facebook? Are they interacting with your page? If you answered yes to these questions, great! It may be worth the time and money to keep the engine going. Be smart. Study your audience and track your ROI based on Facebook data alone to gauge success over time.
Are you a B2B company? Are you having trouble locating an audience on Facebook? Have you had little engagement with your page in the past? If you answered yes to these questions then Facebook may not be the most profitable route. Consider alternative resources like LinkedIn for audience engagement and leads. Also, don’t shy away from email campaigns. Email campaigns are effective and affordable, especially for small businesses.
For more Facebook questions take this detailed quiz: “Discover You Company’s Advertising Potential On Facebook By Answering These 10 Easy Questions”
When it comes to Facebook, be smart marketers and business owners. Know your audience. DO YOUR RESEARCH. Have a plan and for goodness sake, TRACK YOUR DATA.
Finally, know your business. This is said over and over at marketing conferences from the best in the business. You are the best marketer for your company because you know more about it than anyone else. If Facebook sucks for your company, then don’t use it.
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