The MarCom Strategist: A Free B2B Marketing E-Newsletter

July, 2010
Published by Dianna Huff
Volume 10, Number 7

Welcome!

Due to vacation and a flurry of new projects, this newsletter is a few weeks late.

My son and I traveled to California for an eight day "tech tour": We toured Google and visited the Apple campus and the Intel museum, all of which were a blast. We also met a few founders from local Silicon Valley start-ups as well as tech interns. My son, who is a geek and an Apple fan boy, was in heaven!

For this month's issue, I interviewed Facebook expert Patti Fousek, Principal of Creative Mind Search Marketing, for her advice on how to use Facebook for B2B.

To join the conversation, leave your comments below or visit my DH Communications Facebook Page.

Regards,

Dianna Huff

How to Use Facebook for B2B

For a very long time I had a hate - hate relationship with Facebook.

In my limited use of it, I felt very uncomfortable posting personal information to people I didn't know as well as mixing business and personal relationships.

Nor could I see any real application for B2B -- although I do see that Facebook is the perfect medium for B2C.

So I stayed away from it -- that is until I heard Patti Fousek, Principal of Creative Search Marketing, speak at the Newton-Needham Chamber of Commerce (where I also spoke on SEO for small businesses).

Patti gave lots of great tips on how to use Facebook and suddenly, I could see how I could use the platform without having to friend dozens of people I didn't know.

Respect your comfort level

Here's how I make it work for me: I'm only friends on Facebook with people that I have actual conversations with in real life, whether face-to-face or by phone/email/IM. And, I'm only friends with people that I don't do business with.

That narrowed down the Friend list considerably -- and made me feel much more comfortable.

I also set my privacy settings to the equivalent of a chastity belt.

I then developed a DH Communications Page (aka Fan Page) where I can connect with people from a business perspective.

Facebook Pages and business

According to Patti, this is how businesses should be using Facebook as it's against Facebook's terms of service (TOS) to use your personal profile to conduct business. (I could not find this exact wording in the TOS but Facebook does say you can't use your personal profile for commercial gain.)

When I asked Patti if Facebook is applicable to B2B, she said it is but "it's a little trickier. B2C and really big brands do well on Facebook," she says, "because the audience is much more receptive. They're not really thinking, 'business application.'

"It takes longer for a B2B company to build a following, but once you have one, that's when you'll begin seeing real benefit."

Content strategy is key

Businesses fall flat when it comes to Facebook because they don't have a content strategy -- or any kind of strategy. "They open an account," says Patti, "and then don't know what to do with it."

To gain followers, you must first determine what you'll share and then as people begin to "Like" your page and leave comments, you'll then need to build relationships with your Fans.

Incorporate your blog posts

So what should you share? Patti suggests that you begin with your company's blog posts (if you have one).

This step is a little tricky if you're managing your own Profile plus a Business Page.

To import your blog, go to your Page and click the "Edit Page" link in the left corner. At the new page, scroll down and click "Edit" under the "Notes" application, and then click the "Import Blog" link in the shaded box on the right. Follow the directions from there.

Your blog content will then be automatically posted to your Page's Wall.

One thing to note: Pages cannot "Like" Pages or post comments on Page Walls. You can do this only through your Profile. So if you're trying to keep a strict separation between business and personal, this might cause you to hesitate. (This is why Facebook is tricky for some people as it does definitely blur the lines between business and personal.)

Post "expanded" tweets

If your goal is to drive traffic back to your Website, Patti recommends that you periodically give little blasts of information, such as promotions or answering people's questions or concerns.

"Think of these posts as expanded tweets," says Patti. (I've been doing this with Google Buzz and have found it much more satisfying than limiting myself to Twitter's 140 characters.)

Whatever you do, says Patti, don't use your Page to push hard-hitting sales content or press releases. You want to engage with people -- i.e. have real conversation.

In addition to sticking to a content strategy, you'll also want to establish a goal or two for your Page. Patti advises that you not use your Page to address all marketing objectives. She uses her Page, for example, to drive attendance to her workshops.

Keep up with Facebook changes -- and use it!

And lastly, Patti advises that you keep up with Facebook and its constant privacy changes. If you find the privacy settings overwhelming (which is very easy to do), she recommends that you hire a consultant who can explain and set the privacy settings so that your personal information isn't seen by strangers.

"Companies are afraid of Facebook, which is why they don't use it," says Patti. "The platform definitely has a learning curve. My advice is to continually use it. I'd also spend time researching how other companies use Pages to engage with followers and customers.

"Give it a shot for three to six months and if you still don't like it or it's not working for your audience, delete your Page," she says.

Patti, thank you for your time and your excellent advice!

Do you have a B2B Page you'd like to share? Post it to the DH Communications Page. So far I have Patti's page, ExactTarget, and Silverpop listed.

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Get More Leads with the Marketing Assets You Already Have

• Are you overwhelmed with trying to figure out which marketing tactics are best for your business?
• Do you wish someone would just show you how to use your e-newsletter, blog or LinkedIn profile more effectively versus developing something completely new?
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• Recommended changes to existing marketing assets (i.e. revamping an existing e-newsletter or blog)
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To learn more, give me a call at 603-382-8093 or send email to info@dhcommunications.com.

“In my search for Internet marketing professionals, I found many that had niche specialties, but NONE had expertise in all the programs my business needed the way Dianna did. Not only did she make my job easy, but all of my programs were consistent with our master strategy and delivered the same message.

"Today my business enjoys a steady pipeline of business thanks to Dianna. She never rests on her laurels and continually updates, tweaks and evolves with new technology and changes in the way people do business. I could not have enjoyed all my business successes without all of her creative talents, expertise and passion for results.”

Jeff Brooks
President
Brooks Brokerage

Contact DH Communications

Telephone: 603-382-8093
Email: info@dhcommunications.com

Keep up with the latest B2B marketing news at Dianna Huff's B2B MarCom Writer Blog.