No online marketing strategy is complete without Facebook. The world's largest social network can give your campaigns enormous reach, especially when you integrate it with your other marketing tools. Effective Facebook marketing comes down to three key points: Customer Service, Content and Connections.
Having a Facebook page where customers can post reviews, comments and even complaints is essential to building a rapport. Over time, that rapport will turn into brand loyalty. It also inspires word of mouth, as customers/fans encourage their friends to "like" your page. Try to monitor your page for a few minutes a day and respond to listener comments within 24 hours or less. You can also sign up to receive an email alert whenever someone posts to your page.
Your Facebook page is a face for your station. Keep it fresh. Share news, offer promotions, link to outside content and thank listeners for their feedback. They're all great ways to keep customers engaged. Think for a second about how you use Facebook to check out your friends' news and click through their photo galleries. Listeners want to check out your station the same way. Facebook is an ideal platform to share photos and for listeners to post their own photos.
It's not just about engagement. There are several apps available that let you add "buy now" buttons to photos, taking listeners straight to your website. Other apps let you create customized coupons for your fans, and host customer sweepstakes on your Facebook page. Whether you use apps or not, aim for one update, post or promotion per day.
Social media is a vital publicity tool, which makes it an integral part of effective marketing. Getting "likes" and fans is how companies build connections on Facebook. Got a special event happening? Send a message to your fans. Need feedback on a new product? Create a quick survey using a Facebook survey app. The more you connect with your current fans, the more likely their friends are to see your page and become fans (and customers) themselves.
Remember that growing a fanbase on Facebook isn't a popularity contest. It's about building loyalty for the long-term, one interaction at a time.