Facebook Best Practice: Maintain Your Presence

Over 1 billion people use Facebook each month; the phenomenal user rates have driven businesses of all shades to the social network. Some, like Bare Escentuals, Bonobos, Burt’s Bees, and Old Spice, have done very well and appear to really understand what fans are seeking when they “like” a page. Others, though, are wasting the vast potential of Facebook. The Golden Rule when it comes to social media is that, if you go in, you must go all in. Maintaining an active presence is essential.

It seems so simple, doesn’t it? While being social media savvy is important, being there is equally vital. A recent study conducted by Recommend.ly finds that 70.1 percent of brand pages on Facebook are updated less than once a month. With updates so infrequent, you are not giving yourself the chance to engage with a target audience, and you are not availing yourself of the potential ranking power that social media can offer.

Another problem is that 85.3 percent of companies do not actively participate or monitor conversations that occur on their own pages!  This is not just lazy, it is egregiously so!  If you are not involved in the conversation, it is still occurring. One negative comment can turn into 1000; one negative comment can go viral, can touch off other comments, can become the “voice” for your page. It can catch on, and it can impact your brand reputation.

The takeaway, of course, is that you need to be active; you need to invite yourself to your own party.  As a business, you may not necessarily have to be involved with Facebook; it may not be where you need to focus your attention, or it may not be where your customers are. But if you are there, you need to really be there. A neglected social media page is worse, far worse, than no page at all.