[Hot] Facebook Local: Good News For Local Shops?
Facebook is a tricky marketing platform for local businesses. Most local business owners have a sense they should be on Facebook, but many do not have the knowledge or resources to succeed on Facebook.
Facebook is not a must for all brands. When clients come to Alex Stepman, of Stepman's SEO, for social media advice, he asks two simple questions: Do you have the time? Do you have the money?
A lapse in time or money can compromise any brand's social media. In fact, any social media campaign, if not optimized for success, can harm a business.
Simply put, many local businesses do not have realistic social media expectations. Social media takes time. Yet money is the most significant barrier to social media success.
Writing for MarketingLand, Jordan Kasteler reveals the "undeniable truth" about social media: "that without spending some money on advertising...you are just not going to be effective."
Kasteler suggests a $200-$300 budget per day. You can certainly succeed with a streamlined budget, but the fact remains: Without a serious investment, a social media campaign will fail.
Over the years, Facebook has courted brands small and large with its free service while simultaneously making it harder for brands to succeed (without paying). In June, 2016, for example, Facebook diminished content from brands in favor of content from friends. As Facebook announced on its blog:
"Facebook was built on the idea of connecting people with their friends and family. That is still the driving principle of News Feed today. Our top priority is keeping you connected to the people, places and things you want to be connected to — starting with the people you are friends with on Facebook."
At the time, Search Engine Journal noted that these changes may spell the end for the organic reach of brand Pages: "Organic reach was already on decline over the past few years," the site wrote, "and even before the latest algorithm change, SocialFlow observed a drop of 42% from January to May."
At the time, too, we asked: Is Facebook Still a Viable Marketing Tool?
Of course, Facebook does not want to discourage brands. Facebook needs brands to believe the site is a viable marketing tool. From Facebook's perspective, the goal is to entice brands to join--and then pay.
However, Facebook's new mission, to "Bring the world closer together" may be at odds with this money-making agenda. Browser's trust Google, for example, because of its organic results, and as we recently noted:
"Paid advertising helps a search engine like Google make money. But Google's reputation depends on the quality of its 'organic' results. So unpaid marketing, or organic SEO, satisfies the true goal of search engines: to offer the most relevant, unbiased results for any given search."
Read: What is Natural Website Optimzation
Does Facebook understand this lesson? The platform's latest update, Facebook Local, may be good news for the organic reach of brands. So what is Facebook Local? And what are the implications for small brands?
Facebook Local: Good News for Local Businesses?
Facebook Local, a "stab at Yelp and FourSquare," is a rebrand of Facebook Events, which had offered users a tidy space to view user-generated local events. The new application is more robust, offering events and local attractions, like bars and restaurants.
As Tech Crunch noted: "Facebook Local combines events and permanent places to a single search engine powered by Facebook’s 70 million business pages plus reviews and friends’ checkins."
So yes, a stab at Yelp and FourSquare (and Google).
The new app will help you discover nearby attractions as well as the places your friends go. A calendar and a "Trending Events" feed can organize and even guide your leisure decisions.
So what does this mean for local brands?
As of now, it is unclear whether Facebook Local will feature ads. Marketing Land asked this question in an email but received no response.
It appears results are delivered organically, dependent on the user's location. If your local business is on Facebook, then, you will be included in local results. However, of course, local businesses already optimized for Facebook will fare better.
Optimize for Facebook Local
Make sure your business is optimized for Facebook Local by following these (very) simple tips:
1. Make sure your business information is accurate and up-to-date. This includes your About Us section, category page, and contact information.
2. Optimize your URL. (Read: SEO 101: How to Optimize URLS)
3. Set up Place Tips for visiting customers.
4. Make sure your page links to your actual website.
Social Media Marketing with Stepman's SEO
Stepman's SEO combines traditional marketing methods and organic SEO--with an emphasis on natural website optimization--to design thoughtful, inspiring, and effective social media marketing campaigns.
Facebook is not a must for all brands. When clients come to Alex Stepman, of Stepman's SEO, for social media advice, he asks two simple questions: Do you have the time? Do you have the money?
A lapse in time or money can compromise any brand's social media. In fact, any social media campaign, if not optimized for success, can harm a business.
Simply put, many local businesses do not have realistic social media expectations. Social media takes time. Yet money is the most significant barrier to social media success.
Writing for MarketingLand, Jordan Kasteler reveals the "undeniable truth" about social media: "that without spending some money on advertising...you are just not going to be effective."
Kasteler suggests a $200-$300 budget per day. You can certainly succeed with a streamlined budget, but the fact remains: Without a serious investment, a social media campaign will fail.
Over the years, Facebook has courted brands small and large with its free service while simultaneously making it harder for brands to succeed (without paying). In June, 2016, for example, Facebook diminished content from brands in favor of content from friends. As Facebook announced on its blog:
"Facebook was built on the idea of connecting people with their friends and family. That is still the driving principle of News Feed today. Our top priority is keeping you connected to the people, places and things you want to be connected to — starting with the people you are friends with on Facebook."
At the time, Search Engine Journal noted that these changes may spell the end for the organic reach of brand Pages: "Organic reach was already on decline over the past few years," the site wrote, "and even before the latest algorithm change, SocialFlow observed a drop of 42% from January to May."
At the time, too, we asked: Is Facebook Still a Viable Marketing Tool?
Of course, Facebook does not want to discourage brands. Facebook needs brands to believe the site is a viable marketing tool. From Facebook's perspective, the goal is to entice brands to join--and then pay.
However, Facebook's new mission, to "Bring the world closer together" may be at odds with this money-making agenda. Browser's trust Google, for example, because of its organic results, and as we recently noted:
"Paid advertising helps a search engine like Google make money. But Google's reputation depends on the quality of its 'organic' results. So unpaid marketing, or organic SEO, satisfies the true goal of search engines: to offer the most relevant, unbiased results for any given search."
Read: What is Natural Website Optimzation
Does Facebook understand this lesson? The platform's latest update, Facebook Local, may be good news for the organic reach of brands. So what is Facebook Local? And what are the implications for small brands?
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| Is Facebook Local good news for local businesses? |
Facebook Local, a "stab at Yelp and FourSquare," is a rebrand of Facebook Events, which had offered users a tidy space to view user-generated local events. The new application is more robust, offering events and local attractions, like bars and restaurants.
As Tech Crunch noted: "Facebook Local combines events and permanent places to a single search engine powered by Facebook’s 70 million business pages plus reviews and friends’ checkins."
So yes, a stab at Yelp and FourSquare (and Google).
The new app will help you discover nearby attractions as well as the places your friends go. A calendar and a "Trending Events" feed can organize and even guide your leisure decisions.
So what does this mean for local brands?
As of now, it is unclear whether Facebook Local will feature ads. Marketing Land asked this question in an email but received no response.
It appears results are delivered organically, dependent on the user's location. If your local business is on Facebook, then, you will be included in local results. However, of course, local businesses already optimized for Facebook will fare better.
Optimize for Facebook Local
Make sure your business is optimized for Facebook Local by following these (very) simple tips:
1. Make sure your business information is accurate and up-to-date. This includes your About Us section, category page, and contact information.
2. Optimize your URL. (Read: SEO 101: How to Optimize URLS)
3. Set up Place Tips for visiting customers.
4. Make sure your page links to your actual website.
Social Media Marketing with Stepman's SEO
Stepman's SEO combines traditional marketing methods and organic SEO--with an emphasis on natural website optimization--to design thoughtful, inspiring, and effective social media marketing campaigns.