Facebook Netiquette: Are You Hanging Up on Your Customers?

I’ve always struggled with the idea that you have to camp on Facebook. The statistics all show that over 50% of users climb on once a day at least for twenty plus minutes. In a world where 30 seconds is our average attention span that feels like an eternity to me. But then I got it! By posting and update and leaving, I was essentially hanging up on my friends AND my clients. Ugly but true, let me explain.

When you are on Facebook and you post an update, it is a lot like calling up a bunch of your customers (let’s go with this is your business page) and saying . . .

“Hi! This is hilarious, do you agree?” (Funny Pic Attached)

“Awesome new tool for you to use, what do you think?” (Link Attached with New Tool)

“XYZ movie totally rocks, you are going to love it. Be sure to look for . . .” (Movie Attached)

Or whatever else you want to share.

But then instead of waiting for their reply, just as they are about to speak, you hang up the phone by climbing off Facebook and going and doing something else. You wouldn’t do this in real life if it were a phone call so don’t do it on Facebook. Instead, make the most of your time.

Post an engaging update first, then go check out your home feed, make some comments, jump into some conversations, share some additional content that you find. Reach out to at least five of your fans or search for existing customers and invite them to join your page (personal invite by message with a live link works best.) Check back on your update and be sure to engage and acknowledge responses.

Always use first names for a more personal touch. And remember that your updates need to speak to “one person” instead of a population.

This is also the reason you have to be there in person to update instead of scheduling it all out with a tool like Hootsuite or Socialoomph. When you schedule you are starting a conversation in absentia and aren’t going to be around to carrying on the discussion. Sure you can augment your feed with third party shares. I’m a big fan of BufferApp. The challenge is that Facebook penalizes you for content shared by third party applications. They want you there, in person (yes you can use a social media admin), first hand interacting and engaging.

Facebook is a powerful business tool when you use it right, well and consistently and persistently. Random acts of Facebook aren’t going to grow your business or your bottom line; they won’t improve your career standing or promotability either.

Find me on Facebook, talk to me about your experiences and love to know what is working for you!