If there were a reality show to see who could give the quickest, most useful presentation on great Facebook marketing, Lyon Lee would Boston Rob the hell out of it.
During Social Media Week’s “Advanced Facebook Marketing” session, Lee, the co-founder of Toronto-based FanCrank, gave a talk in under an hour that covered how to build awareness for a brand’s Facebook page, the “dos and don’ts” of creating Facebook ads and how to boost click-through rates.
You wouldn’t necessarily expect an MBA that helped launch RIM all over the world to pepper “cool, cool” throughout his session, but that’s Lee’s laid back style. As someone whose company works to create social media experiences for its clients by manufacturing engaging interfaces for fans, Lee has collected valuable lessons along the way.
Here are some of the tips he shared:
• While using Facebook to engage consumers seems like a no-brainer to those already entrenched in social media, the playing field is still anything but level. Lee said marketers at a lot of large companies are still new to Facebook; it’s not second nature to everyone. He chalked it up to a “generational thing,” noting that his parents only joined Facebook last year.
• “If you want to know what’s going to be really big in four years, follow what the 18-year-olds are doing now,” said Lee. If you can pry them away from frosh week partying, ask your young niece or cousin which apps they’re using and games they’re playing.
• For those that reference a brand’s Facebook page in a TV spot, don’t just throw up the ol’ “Visit us on Facebook icon.” You shouldn’t make consumers do the work of plugging a brand’s name into a search engine to hunt for its Facebook presence, said Lee. Do the work for them by putting the page’s actual address in the commercial. “A lot of traditional ad agencies are horrible at this and it boggles my mind.”
• If you want awareness for your Facebook page, you’ll get it through ads, Lee said. When creating a Facebook ad, it’s key to understand your audience. For instance, who makes the purchasing decisions on your products or services? Lee cited a figure that a whopping 90% of household purchases are made by the female of the house.
• How do you make a good Facebook ad? Include a call to action (tell the audience what to do, give them direction); use clear, simple, understandable visuals and pictures; use clear, concise copy.
• Addressing the question “When should I post?” Lee said it’s wise to find out which time zone most of your fans are in, and then put up content in the sweet spot between 9 a.m. and 12 p.m. People tend to check Facebook when they wake up, and before, during and after lunch, he said. Once you’ve found a time that increases interaction rates, “stick to it like glue.”
• For those looking to improve their Facebook Edgerank algorithm (a way of ranking posts on a user’s top news feed to determine which posts should be shown on top of said feed), Lee offers these tips: ask questions in your copy, post pictures, like every comment that’s made and respond to all posts as soon as possible.
How do you set your Facebook ads apart? Post your thoughts in our comments section.
