In honor of Facebook’s 10th Anniversary, we thought it’d be appropriate to highlight ten key facts about the social giant and why your business NEEDS to be on it.
1) It’s Currently the #1 Social Network in Both Population AND Engagement
Facebook has over 1 Billion users and 50 million Facebook pages. That means 1 out of every 12 people in the world have a Facebook profile and spend an average of 20 minutes on the site each time they login. And unlike its social network competitor Google+, Facebook users actually spend quite a lot of time engaging on the site (with 64% of Facebook users visiting the social network daily), making it the perfect customer service tool.
2) 73% of Teens have a Facebook Profile
There has been talk for quite some time amongst marketing professionals that Facebook lost it’s “cool” factor amongst teens. However Pew Research Center recently debunked this myth by releasing some interesting facts about itself, including the fact that 73% percent of U.S. Internet users between the ages of 12 and 17 are on the social network. So if your Target Market falls within this age range, Facebook should still be a key player in your overall marketing strategy.
3) Powerful Advertising
Most online advertising reaches only 27% of its intended audience. Facebook’s average is 91%. That’s a huge difference! This is due to the extreme targeting abilities of Facebook’s Ad Editor, which allows you to choose your audience based on location, age, income level, interests, and more.
4) It gives your Brand a Personality
Having a strong active presence on Facebook gives you the opportunity to really bring your brand to life and create strong relationships with your customer. By providing engaging and valuable content, your customers will want to interact with your brand- either by sharing your posts, asking questions or commenting with their ideas. Delivering outstanding customer service online can convert people to paying customers and persuade current customers to continue buying from you.
5) Optimizes Word of Mouth
90% of consumers surveyed by Nielsen Global noted that they trust recommendations from people they know, while 70% trusted consumer opinions posted online. If the average user is connected to 130 friends, that’s 130 possible new customers for every user who shares, comments or likes your Facebook content.
6) Chances are your Competitor is on it
With over 50 million Facebook pages currently in existence, there is a huge chance that your competition already has a presence on the network. If they are utilizing their Facebook correctly this means that they have a customer service and brand awareness advantage. If your customer is on Facebook and they constantly see valuable updates from your competitor in their Newsfeed, who do you think they will think of first when it comes to the service/product you and your competitor provide? Your competitor of course.
7) It’s Stickier Than Your Website
If you’re in charge of marketing for your business, you know how hard it can be to get customers to stay on your website. The average person spends only 5.23 minutes on the average website, whereas Facebook users spend an average of 20 minutes each time they visit Facebook. That’s almost 15 more minutes to get your message across to your customer!
8) Great Features
Want to hold a contest? Post an offer? Spread the word about your Event? Facebook has some great tools that allow you to make effective campaigns and generate large amounts of social sharing to increase awareness. Aside from options on posts, there are thousands of apps available to drive traffic to your website or cross promote any other social media networks your business is on.
9) More Online Visibility
Having an updated Facebook page gives your business more visibility with search engines by providing potential customers with another opportunity to learn more about your business. Customers not only have a chance to see what you offer on your website, but they also can see more real-time updates and recommendations from other people on your Facebook.
10) It’s a HUGE part of your Customer’s Life
If 57% of U.S. adults are on Facebook and 48% of 18-34 yr old FB users check Facebook first thing when they wake up, it’s safe to say that Facebook is a very important part of the average person’s life. And what’s important to your customer should be important to you.