Dos and Don’ts: Facebook Business Pages

Facebook is a social networking giant that your marine business can’t live without. From building a community, advertising your boats, and attracting new customers, a Facebook business page can be a key element in the growth and success of your business.

We’ve broken down some dos and don’ts for your boat dealership’s Facebook business page.

Do:

• Keep posts short & sweet – Don’t be the business that creates blog-length Facebook posts. People on social media have a short attention span, so get your point across as efficiently as possible.
• Use Facebook for customer service –Answer technical questions and other FAQs.
• Tag tag tag. – Tag your business and customers in videos and photos as often as possible. It gives your posts a higher likelihood of being seen by more people.
• Befriend Facebook group administrators. – Search out groups that your ideal customers are a part of and ask the administrator to offer specials, coupons and other perks. A status update, wall post, or message from a group’s administrator will return better results.
• Answer questions & respond to posts — Respond to your followers & be personal. People like to know that there’s a real human(s) behind the business.
• Ask questions and ask for feedback — The best posts on Facebook pages tend to be questions. Ask them often & listen to what your users are saying. Create conversation!
• Participate in the conversation — Customers appreciate business owners who take interest.
• Integrate a “Like” button onto your site and newsletter. – Integrate a Facebook “Like” button into the customer experience and surround it with a call to action. For example, place the button near your email list sign-up form.
• Provide helpful links — Be sure to help educate your audience, not just promote your products.
• Follow thought leaders — Find other people in the marine industry & follow them — Make sure to interact with them & their followers.
• Run Promotions — Offer specials, coupons & limited-time offers.
• Keep Customers Informed — If your business going to be closed, let your customers know ahead of time.
• Post Photos — Post pictures of your inventory, business & employees.
• Say Thank You — Thank your followers & fans often. Make them the center of your focus.

Don’t:

• Over post — Only post as often as you can get good engagement. You don’t want to spam people’s newsfeeds.
• Link Facebook Ads to your Facebook page. – Ads may get you results but link them to a page on your website that has information about the ad and encourage them to take action. Push users from Facebook to your turf.
• Excessively self-promote — I go by the 90/10 rule: 90% of your posts should be fun & informative, 10% can be promotion.
• Send mass messages to your network. – Most users will never even look at your messages. If you do send a message, make sure it offers something of real value. Avoid general brand messages and announcements, as it annoys most people.
• Use Bad Grammar — Make sure you don’t have any grammar errors or misspelled words in your posts. It just doesn’t look professional.
• Be Shy — This is your opportunity to speak directly to your customers. Be outgoing, engaging, and show some personality!
• Overshare — Don’t post rants or gripe about employees or customers. Some things are better left offline!
• Respond Hastily — Remember your messages are public. Well thought out & correct answers are vital.
• Bad Mouth Competitors — You may think the competing dealership down the street sucks. But don’t air your opinions on social media about it.
• Share Secrets- You don’t have to tell everyone all of your business secrets — again some things need to stay offline. If you share every problem you have, your customers will lose faith in you & your business.

These are just some basic best practices for running a Facebook business page, but utilizing the platform to grow in the marine industry can go a lot deeper. If you’re looking for more advice or assistance with your social media marketing as a boat dealer or other marine industry business, reach out to us here: www.boatmarketingpros.com/contact-us