A lot has changed since Facebook’s first voyage in the marketing world. For a starter, the company rebranded to Meta in October 2021. The social media also launched several useful features for marketing such as meta pixel, video polls, 360° Mode, and selling products through a chatbot. From a place solely for entertainment, Facebook has transformed into an important marketing tool for brand promotion and customer interaction.
If you are a business owner, you need to be on Facebook. While different social media platforms are popping up every year, no one can deny the power of Facebook to convert leads, increase customer support, and boost sales. But presence alone is not enough. You need to set your Facebook marketing strategy in place to make sure that you achieve the result you need.
What Is Facebook Marketing?
Facebook marketing is only one form of social media marketing where you promote a business, products, and services on the Meta platform. Like other forms of marketing, the goal is to grow brand awareness, increase online following, gather leads, and sell more products.
Your Facebook marketing campaign may include posting text, photos, and video content. You can also launch reels and stories. If you have enough resources, you can also run Facebook ads, boosted posts, and team up with influencers.
Is Facebook an effective marketing tool?
Facebook (Meta today) remains to be the most popular social media platform today. The platform had 2.96 billion users in the third quarter of 2022, according to Statista. This number continues to rise with no signs of stopping anytime soon. In the Philippines, there are at least 89 million active Facebook users as of July 2022. So, imagine how wide the market you can reach by using Facebook to promote your business.
Facebook users are not only large, but it also spans different demographics. It’s great news for businesses as they can find an audience on the platform, no matter to whom your business caters.
However, the effectiveness of Facebook as a marketing tool is not measured by the number of users alone. The average user spends almost an hour per day on Facebook. Furthermore, general users use the platform not only to share photos. A study published on the Hootsuite website revealed that 53.2% of internet users ages 16-24 use social media to search for brands online. Furthermore, 66% of users check out local business pages at least once a week on Facebook.
Meta’s targeting capability is also more advanced compared to other social media platforms. This is one of the biggest benefits of Facebook Marketing. You can target certain audiences based on age, location, age, gender, and interest. Beyond that, Facebook also has features that allow your ads to appear on your competitors’ fans or to those users who have previously visited your page.
Finally, you can measure the result of your Facebook marketing campaign, unlike the traditional marketing effort. Marketing campaigns made on the platform can be measured for their effectiveness by tracking click-through rates and the percentage of customers who convert from viewers to buyers.
6 steps in creating effective Facebook marketing strategy for business
An eMarketer study revealed that 95.8% of social media marketers consider Facebook as an essential tool in reaching media marketing success. But, how to do effective marketing on Facebook?
Acquiring a competitive edge in today’s growing market can be very challenging. Luckily, there are tried and tested steps you can take to create a more effective Facebook marketing strategy. Consider the following for more chances of launching a successful campaign on the Meta platform.
1. Identify Your Facebook Audience
Like other forms of marketing, everything should start by defining your target. Know the specific group of people who are likely to acquire your products or services. The more clearly you define your audience the better you can come up with content and other Facebook marketing strategies that would reach them.
Start by knowing the age bracket your potential customers fall in. Answer how and when they use Facebook. If you are targeting the working class, know their job responsibilities. Understand the problem and challenges they encounter with your industry or products. Then clearly define why your business or product is the solution for that problem.
By following the steps above you can narrow down your focus for your marketing strategy. To help you in those steps, you can use the Audience Insights inside Meta Business Suite. This section lets you see the demographics of your existing audience. This is a very useful section as you can find more than basic info about your followers. These data include your audiences’ Education attainment, Relationship Status, Location, Interests and hobbies, languages spoken, Facebook usage statistics, and Past purchase activity.
2. Be clear with your goal
Identifying the goal is also a crucial step in creating a more powerful marketing strategy. In fact, without defining the goal, it will be hard for you to create an effective marketing strategy on Facebook. Of course, the majority of businesses increase sales.
But for small businesses or start-up brands, your goal can be more than just increasing revenue. There are also other goals you can aim to succeed in your market. Here are the other goals you can achieve in Facebook marketing:
- Increase brand awareness
- Solidify customer service
- Create a deeper connection with your market
- Build and maintain a brand image
- Bring more customers to your physical store
By clearly defining your goal, you’ll be more guided in all your marketing and content strategies on Facebook.
3. Setup your business account properly
Before you focus on marketing your content on Facebook, make sure that your Facebook page is all set up. Your Facebook page is your business profile on the platform. So, it should appear professional or aligned with your brand voice.
Don’t forget to add a profile picture and cover photo as these two will serve as the primary image of your page. Add a short description of your page, as well as all the important information such as your address, contact details, and website.
We also recommend adding a CTA button on your page for you to instantly convert your audience to a customer. To add a CTA button, click the “Plus” (+) button below your cover photo. You will then have different choices of CTAs for your page. Select the best fit for your page and click the “Next” button. You then need to choose a link for the CTA to lead to. This can be your Messenger, a website landing page, or a video.
Finally, try to verify your Facebook page on the platform. Being verified means that the platform has confirmed the authenticity of your page. The verification badge on your page is not a requirement. However, this is important to small businesses and startups that are looking for a way to gain people’s trust.
4. Create a social media calendar
It’s good practice to schedule your post in advance. In this way, you can organize and optimize your content strategy on Facebook. You’ll know what type of content you need to post next and when is the right time to publish it on your page.
To be guided, you can follow the classic social media content strategy, the rule of thirds. Here, one-third for your creative ideas and stories. Another third is the dire interaction with your audience. The last section is for promotional content. By following this, you can achieve more balance in your content.
5. Install Meta Pixel
First known as Facebook Pixel, the Meta Pixel is a code installed on your website to measure the effectiveness of your marketing campaign. It allows you to understand the action of your audience on your website. For example, you’ll know if your audience is adding an item to their shopping cart or if they are checking it out to make a purchase. Meta Pixel also allows you to show your ad to the right people and track its performance.
Keep in mind that you need to have a website for your business before you can use Meta Pixel. If you already have a website, you can follow these simple steps to set up your Meta Pixel:
- Log in to your Facebook Events Manager.
- In the left menu, click on Data Sources and select Web.
- Select Meta Pixel and click Connect.
- Write in the name of the Pixel.
- Enter the URL of your website. This is an optional step for easy setup.
- Click Continue.
- Click Set up the Pixel Now to install the Meta Pixel.
You can use Pixel to track the audience’s actions. To do this, go to the Pixel’s Overview tab, and click Add Events. Enter your URL and click Open website.
6. Try Facebook advertising
Now that you have gone through all the steps mentioned above, you are ready to launch your first Facebook ad. Running a Facebook ad for your business is a lot of work. There is just a lot to consider such as the ad groups, formats, creative options, launch dates, and so much more.
If you’re still unsure about your Facebook marketing strategy, we suggest starting by boosting. The practice of boosting a post allows the content to reach a wider audience or those people who are likely to engage in your content. In a nutshell, the boosted content become a Facebook ad. Boosted posts are relatively cheaper as well. And you can also specify your budget upfront.
Ready to enter the world of Facebook marketing?
With a massive reach, having a business account on the Meta platform is not optional anymore. However, being on Facebook is not enough to get a competitive advantage over your customer. You need to develop an effective Facebook marketing strategy that will make your journey to success a lot easier.
Following the steps above can help you optimize your Facebook marketing campaign. Still, some of you might find it hard to identify the change you need to take to gain more visibility. While there are also some businesses that know what they want to implement but don’t know where to start.
This is where we step in. Be Global E-commerce has an entire team dedicated to crafting social media marketing strategies. Whether you are an E-commerce store, a small business, or an established brand, our team of experts can help you achieve your marketing goal. Let our team guide you as you dive into the world of Facebook marketing. Contact us today to begin your journey.
