The flood of traffic that Facebook enjoys as the second most trafficked site in the world makes them attractive for business for this reason alone. However, the lack of control over its content, the non-commercial reasons people use Facebook, and its clumsy user interface are causes for concern. Learn how to use and how not to use Facebook Pages so you can create a “Pages” strategy that gives you the best match between market and medium.

Wherever you look, companies have Facebook Fanpages: no, wait; Facebook pages. Companies ask you to become Facebook fans: No, I mean Facebook Likers (we need a new English word for this one!) For those of you who don’t know the musical chairs from Facebook pages, Facebook replaced the Facebook Fan button with a “Like Button. And therein lies the problem: Facebook owns and controls the platform and severely restricts your ability to manage or remove its content. They offer no guarantees about how you will be able to use their platform and content. In the future To put this in perspective, I recently retweeted a Wall Street Journal article discussing the results of a survey: Facebook ranked just above the IRS in customer satisfaction.

5 things Facebook evangelists forgot to tell you

1. Although Facebook is number 2 in global traffic, only 1/6 of Facebook users have an interest in using it to follow companies or brands. I discuss this in depth in my Twitter for Business article. His switch from the Fan to Like button aims to broaden that appeal. We’ll have to wait and see how the Likes affect usage, but I think it will add to the appeal of the page.
2. Maintaining a company page is a significant time commitment for a small business. Not all business models will necessarily get a positive ROI unless they can use Facebook in a very specific way. I suggest you at least create a facebook page account and reserve your business name to keep your options open.
3. Do you have a strategy on how to use a Facebook page that is unique to your website or blog strategy? If you are just reiterating tweets, blog posts, or videos that are available elsewhere, your Fanpage will add little value to others or to your business. You really need a unique strategy for a Fanpage to work. Paul Colligan uses his Facebook page to host his podcast. Since this is the only place you can subscribe outside of iTunes, this is a great strategy and their Fanpage is regularly updated and adds unique value. My company created a fan page for one of our clients that will feature their “stars of the month”. Since they are a performing arts company, this is an extremely cool and attractive use of their fan page. And only people who have liked your page can be considered for this monthly feature, so this also creates a unique value proposition to join your page.
4. Facebook controls all aspects of the content that you post on your site. You may have heard how Blogger, Squidoo, and other blogging platforms can and do remove entire sites (without warning) for violating their terms of service, whether intentionally or unintentionally. If your business relies heavily or solely on these blogging platforms or Facebook pages, you are taking a risk. However, simply hosting a podcast carries little risk, as your RSS feed can self-host on an Amazon S3, upload to iTunes, and if something were to happen to your Facebook page, Podcast subscribers would still receive your content and the podcast subscription page could easily be moved to a different website.
5. Don’t feel like you have to use Facebook Pages if it doesn’t fit your business model. However, I highly recommend Twitter. as it is easy to learn, use and understand, and 51% of users follow companies and brands versus 16% of all other social media sites. Twitter also perfectly complements a blog. It can be easily configured to automatically tweet (micro-blog) a 140 character title and summary of your new post to your Twitter followers.

The myth and reality of fashion

When octogenarian Betty White says, “I’m on Facebook,” in her latest commercial, she gives you insight into the depth of the Facebook craze. Everyone, including businesses, is taking to Facebook and dedicating significant resources to Pages. But few have any idea how it will benefit their business. Facebook Pages can work incredibly well for some businesses. Pepsi demonstrated the power of Facebook pages with its successful “Project Refresh.” However, they were successful because they were so focused on a niche project that allowed their Fans (now Likers) to vote on exactly what Pepsi would do with their Refresh Project; a compelling social campaign that gives back to communities.

What are not Facebook fan pages

I am a believer in social media like marketing and social media, but I recently read several articles claiming that Facebook Pages will replace blogs as the center of the new media business universe. This statement demonstrates a lack of business acumen and shows how fashions can overwhelm reason. While personal Facebook pages are clearly the place of choice to connect with your personal friends, I can tell you with absolute certainty that Facebook business pages will never be the center of the new media universe. As long as Facebook has complete control over how businesses use their own content, Facebook will never be the center of your online strategy. Not to be stacked, but their obtuse user interface and nonchalant attitude towards their users make them less attractive for a core business strategy.

How to Use Facebook Business Pages Successfully

If you really want to leverage Facebook for what’s best, you’ll need to use it to focus on an important social aspect of your business and build a strategy around it. It should be fun and emotionally engaging. Whether it’s a podcast or a customer spotlight, it needs to be social and allow your customers and Likes to engage and participate socially. Remember how people use the Facebook platform: they go to Facebook to socialize with their friends. By developing a Facebook strategy that meets this need, you will be successful on Facebook and build a strong fan base of loyal “Likers”.

What is your experience with Facebook pages? Do you like their user experience, are they intuitive to build and use, and what do you like or dislike about the pages?