November 2009

Launched in 2004, and limited to college email addresses, Facebook was designed to help students stay connected with one another. Since opening registration to the general public in 2006, however, Facebook has fast become a prominent social networking site.

Public relations and marketing professionals looking to get the most out of their publicity campaigns and social media initiatives have also turned their attention to Facebook—and with good reason. According to Laura Spencer, in a blog post entitled Should You Build Your Public Relations Efforts on Facebook?, the site's users have begun "to expect that their favorite brands will be on Facebook. You could be losing future business when a potential customer searches for you on Facebook (and can't find you) without even realizing it."

Facebook’s Many Uses

PR and marketing specialists have found many purposes for Facebook. In addition to general public relations and marketing initiatives, here are just a few of the other uses:

• Internal communications
• Recruitment
• Coalition building
• Advertising
• Customer service
• Media outreach
• Professional and personal networking

Profile Fan Page or Group…

If you already use Facebook for connecting with family and friends, you're probably familiar with a personal profile. If not, profiles can be defined as the most basic type of Facebook page—one that you'll be required to establish upon registration. (Note: A business is not permitted to have an independent profile.) From your profile, you can post and/or comment on status updates; chat in real-time with, or send private emails to, connections; and create fan pages or groups, among others things. Privacy settings can be adjusted by specific contact lists or according to the amount of information you want to reveal to search engines and the public.

A Facebook fan page is similar to a personal profile and increasingly shares much of the same functionality, including the ability to add custom applications, thereby enhancing communication with constituents. A fan page, however, is for your business, brand, or product, rather than for an individual (exceptions are artists, musicians, entertainers, and other public figures). Fan pages are created by using the personal profile of the individual authorized to represent your company. You can, however, designate one or more secondary administrator to help manage your page. (This is helpful in the event that the original creator is no longer with the company or should you wish to have multiple parties interact on behalf of the company, product, or brand).

Depending on how the page is set up, fans will have a variety of ways to interact with your business, including posting comments on the fan page wall, RSVPing for events, and posting pictures and/or video. When an administrator takes action on a fan page such as updating a status, uploading a video, or updating events, etc., these actions are displayed as coming from the company or brand. However, if an administrator posts a response or "likes" to a comment left by a fan these actions display as coming from the individual.

Facebook groups are similar to online forums or discussion boards, and can be created around any topic or brand. To create a group, go to the groups application and select "create a new group." They are less customizable than a fan page, but provide a place for open dialogue. The downside: businesses have less control over content, design, or appearance of the group.

So how do you decide whether to use a group or fan page? You may wish to do a sort of A B test to see which performs better. Ultimately though, the choice depends on your larger objectives. For an in-depth look at Facebook fan pages and groups, check out this blog post from David Robbins of OnePR.

Ten Best Practices

Once you've started using Facebook in your media efforts, the following 10 steps will help you derive the most value from this social networking resource:

1. Define your goals for engaging via Facebook. Let your clients and connections know whether you're planning to use the platform for professional, or personal reasons, or a combination. Then stick to that plan.
2. Choose your company's representative carefully. Remember, the profile of the person who creates the page cannot be deleted without deleting the page itself. In view of this limitation, you probably won't want your intern to create the page.
3. Protect your privacy. If you're going to network with both professional and personal contacts, be sure to filter your lists and set privacy settings accordingly. Nick O'Neill of AllFacebook.com offers guidance in "Ten Privacy Settings Every Professional Should Know."
4. Treat your fan page or group like a mini-web page. Think of your fan page as an extension of your official website or blog. Provide links to become a Facebook fan, or join your Facebook group on your corporate site. Let your fans know of important updates, events you'll be attending, and helpful resources via your page or group.
5. Engage your fans/group members with compelling content and discussion. It will help ensure that they return, interact, and possibly suggest your fan page or group to their connections.
6. Don't pitch. Instead, focus your initial efforts on connecting with current clients and contacts. Then expand your relationship to others in your industry or to targeted niche markets.
7. Consider adding relevant pages to your "favorites" on your fan page. This helps in networking, broadening brand exposure, and providing useful information to your fans. In addition, the companies, brands, and products you praise just might return the favor by including you as a favorite on their page.
8. Be careful of what and how often you post. Facebook has several measures in place to prevent the sending of spam. Familiarize yourself with Facebook's write-up on warnings and its terms and conditions, so that you don't inadvertently misuse the site and have your content removed or, worse, have your account disabled.
9. Use a current profile picture or custom images. This makes your page more personable; participants may be more likely to interact with you if they aren't seeing a logo.
10. Advertise your e-newsletter, contests, and promotions. Touting your giveaways and special events will help generate buzz and create interest in your offers.