8 Great Apps for your Facebook Business Page

I’ve been touting the benefits of a Facebook business page for years. But don’t let it stagnate! The purpose of such a page should be to build relationships, to engage users, and to position yourself as an expert in your field. Using these apps will help accomplish those goals.

Tabmaker

If you’ve wondered how to get one of those fancy landing pages, you could hire a web developer or website designer to do it for you, heck – you could hire me. But you could also do it yourself. Tabmaker is a free application that allows you to set up a landing page for first-time visitors or share exclusive content with your fans only. Use your own images, chose colors, and the design you like.

Easy Promos Premium

With Easy Promos you can create your own sweepstakes, photo or video contests, essay contests, pick your favorite, or offer other coupons and promotional codes on your Facebook business page. The premium version costs $100 per campaign. The user-friendly app allows you to manage and customize your promotion from participant requirements to deadlines and more. The Premium version offers options to, “create and manage video contests, customize opt-in checkboxes, create custom wall posts, upload your own banner in the header, and control registration and voting dates. You can also control the frequency of voting according to IP, and limit voting to friends of the entrant.”

Contest Tab

Contest tab is only $30. For that price you can build awareness of your brand with user-generated photo content. The potential to go viral is huge. You can customize with CSS, view real-time analytics, and add share and invite buttons. Additional app options include access to related apps: My Restaurant Tab, Photo Contest Tab, Hotels Tab, Real Estate Tab, and Rent Your Home Tab.

One Way Commerce

If you’ve read the statistics on mobile shopping, you’re aware of the direction commerce is heading. This full e-commerce system allows you to create an instant storefront on your business page. Inventory is tracked, emails sent, and it integrates with QuickBooks and Salesforce.com. The app is FREE and takes only a few minutes to get started. You can create custom banners, upload graphics, and add like buttons to each product. Now there is no excuse to not be selling online!

Join my Mailing List

If you’re on Constant Contact, this app should be a no-brainer. Why not have a tab to grow your list? Enough said. Here's mine. (I made it while in Constant Contact.)

Networked Blogs

Another helpful app. If you’re blogging, have your blog autopost on your business page (also works on a personal profile). All you have to do is register your blog and prove you are the author. Here's mine.

SlideShare

If you use slideshare.net, you need this tool to import your presentations to Facebook. Supports PowerPoint, Keynote, and more! It’s easy to synch the accounts. Just find synch under the application. One disadvantage is you cannot view without going to the app page.

Cueler

If you’re on YouTube autopost videos you upload to your business channel on Facebook. It’s super easy. Just add the Cueler app and tell it what your YouTube username is. Cueler adds a tab and stores your latest videos there as well as posting on your wall (and in fans’ newsfeeds). Body Essentials uses this well.

These are just a few of the apps I like. Also consider a review app. Have one that’s worked for you? Please share in the comments below. If you need help managing your social media presence, just call 715-584-6773.

Why Business Owners Should be Irritated with Facebook Changes

I’ve seen countless status updates from my Facebook friends, expressing irritation with all the changes Facebook has been making. Many of the changes weren’t previously announced. Changes implemented this week are more than an annoyance, many will detrimentally impact the way businesses use Facebook.

Likes are changing. Likes are no longer on the main newsfeed. This includes business page likes and likes on friends’ posts. If you like content outside of Facebook, however this still shows up on the feed. Fewer likes mean fewer impressions and fewer opportunities to target your fans’ friends.

Newsfeed algorithms are now giving emphasis to relationships with friends over brand pages. Same holds true for pictures. Photos on the newsfeed have increased in size, but only for users, not for brand pages.

That’s not all. Rumor has it that at the end of the month Facebook will no longer publish business page updates to fans’ newsfeeds.

What can your business do? Continue to focus on using Facebook to build relationships. I’ve always touted this as the best intention, not hard selling! Also, allow the public to have the option to subscribe to your public feeds. Make business related updates viewable by the public.

One positive change is that business pages no longer need 25 likes before they can customize the URL. Just go to facebook.com/username to get your unique address.

Stay tuned for more updates from me, Social Media Marketing guru, Terra L. Fletcher. I love my job because it is never boring. There is always something to learn. Please share your comments below. How do you plan to use Facebook for business in the months to come? Are you looking forward to seeing what Google+ will come out with for business?

The Future of Display Ads, Is Google the Way to Go?

Three years ago, Google acquired DoubleClick to grow beyond search advertising. The $3.1 billion purchase allowed them to tap the market for display ads on the top and sides of webpages. Google’s stock soared 35% in the two months following the deal.


Since then stocks have stagnated. Google brought back behavioral advertising halted by DoubleClick. The current wave of “Do Not Track” bills in Congress threaten to limit the cookies companies can use to track ad effectiveness. The attention of anti-trust regulators has also been captured in Europe.

Google allows users to adjust online profiles and even opt out of tracking from the ads preferences manager. According to Neal Mohan, VP for product management at Google, for every seven users that adjust their preferences, only one user opts out. He says, “What we find is that the more relevant the ad, the better the user experience is.”

Threats to Google display ads include Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter, and even Apple. Yahoo! was the big contender, but now Twitter is poised to take in larger shares of ad dollars. Apple’s iAd program for mobile devices is going to prove a worthy adversary as people spend more time online mobily, even shopping from their smartphones.

As of October display ad sales by Google were budgeted at $2.5 billion annually. Google says display ads reach 80% of internet users. The company says 99% of its 1000 largest advertisers run both display ads and text-based search ads.

Analysts counter that at least half of said revenue is from ads run on YouTube (Google acquired in 2006). YouTube would likely be successful without display revenue. YouTube surpassed Google as most-visited site on the net. Video marketing is proving a wise investment for many businesses.

Bloomberg Businessweek cites Facebook as Google’s biggest threat to display ads. (I think they could’ve ended the statement after “Facebook is Google’s biggest threat.”) Facebook revenue in 2011 will be around $4 billion. Revenue comes almost entirely from the small display ads run on members’ pages. Facebook sells these ads directly, not allowing outsiders like Google access to Facebook’s 500 million members.

Google senior vice president of advertising, Susan Wojcicki says “Facebook will definitely do interesting things and has an interesting perspective, but the web is a really big place.” She’s been at Google for 12 years now. In fact it’s the only job that showed on Wojcicki's LinkedIn profile. My guess is that she’s hoping to stay there a few more years. But I do have to wonder if she is on Facebook.

For help with your display ads, call Fletcher Freelance today. (715) 584-6773

Ecommerce on Facebook, the Latest Trends

Asos


Asos (As Seen on Screen) is the first retailer in Europe to set up shop on Facebook. The London-based clothing shop received this designation on January 27. Most retailers, including Asos competitors, use the social network to communicate with fans – what I usually recommend. Now Asos 465,000 fans can shop 150,000 produces without leaving Facebook. They can post photos for friends to see and comment on.

Asos CEO, Nick Robertson, says “Our [customers] are on Facebook all day, every day.” At present the store can only be accessed via PC or iPad, but the app for smart phones is in the works.

Moppers

Mobile shoppers or “Moppers” have been using smart phones, iPads, and other mobile devices to browse, comparison shop, and ask friends for advice. Making a purchase seemed the next natural step. Of Facebook’s 500 million users, 200 million access the network mobile. Mobile users are twice as active as PC users.

According to Verdict Research and Ovum, mobile commerce will double in the UK by 2013, reaching $440 million. Major names, J.C. Penney and Delta Air Lines, have already worked with developers to set up shop. Mike Fauscette of IDC in Framingham MA says that in three to five years 10-15% of consumer spending in developed countries will take place through social networking sites.

World’s largest ecommerce marketplace, EBay, predicts doubling of mobile sales this year. Fashion sees the biggest growth. Britain’s top retailer, Tesco, has had an app (since October) that allows shoppers to photograph a barcode and add the product to their virtual shopping basket. John Lewis will be launching a smart phone app that will offer fashion advice and buying guides early this year.

Gaming

Side Note: Zynga, Facebook’s number one game developer, is looking to go public. T. Rowe Price and Fidelity are rumored to be raising $250 million in funding. Valuation is estimated at $9 billion. There is a rush to invest in the company (before its IPO) by institutional fund managers.