It's All About That Face

I often write about the importance of having social media accounts for your business. The type of social media depends on the business, but I've always said Facebook is a must. For my freelancing business I have Facebook, Instagram, and this blog. But, I haven't been reaching many people with my Facebook page within the past year or so. I'll see under each post "2 people reached." Why has it dropped off? How can I attract more people without paying to boost my post? Then, while scrolling through my Facebook feed, an ad got my attention. It was an image of a woman, with large Coke bottle classes, pulling out her hair, mouth open and yelling in frustration (see image below). It was an ad for a free seminar. Something about it sucked me in, and I quickly signed up. The seminar was geared more towards businesses offering merchandise (instead of services), but I actually received a lot of helpful tips and I want to share them with you. First, we discussed the ad that drew us to the seminar to begin with. It was fascinating to learn that having one person on the ad, not a group of people, and having the person show emotion, immediately engages the viewer. It's human nature to pay attention to someone else showing emotion. In addition, viewers tend to respond more to this person being a woman.

Interesting stuff! Next, especially with advertising on Facebook, it's important to have an ad that stands out against the Facebook "blues." This ad had bright red that immediately set itself apart from the rest of the Facebook feed. Lastly, color coordination in ads helps a viewer's eye to catch the important aspects of the ad. An ad was shown in the presentation with a child with blond hair and bright blue yes. Again, it's human nature to look into the eyes of another. First, you see the child's blue eyes. Next, your eye jumps to the matching hue in the offer to the right of her face, "Save $10." It all happens so fast in your mind, but the outcome is that the viewer catches the deal or offer of the ad in a second.

Next, I'll hit you with are some statistics. The first thing we went over in the seminar was which social media was right for your company. The answer is, as I said before, Facebook. But why? The Sats: 60% of consumers visit your Facebook page before visiting your actual location. 80% of consumers are more inclined to purchase from you if they find a credible, authentic Facebook page for your business. 62% of consumers say Facebook is the most important social media channel to research your business. These facts are from the Retail Marketing Academy presentation. Great. So Facebook is important. Well, I have a Facebook page, but it's hardly reaching anyone anymore. Why? Over the past few years, Facebook has been catering to users who take those surveys that pop up. After completing the survey, Facebook found that most people want their news feed filled with posts from friends and family, not businesses. Obviously this isn't news. But, how does Facebook determine you are a business? A red flag goes up the moment you add certain keywords or include a link in your post, and it doesn't reach the users who have opted to see less advertising. In fact, it reaches an average of 1-5% of the people who have liked your page! For a very small business like mine, that's a mere 2-3 people. So, with this knowledge, I have now altered the wording in my posts and already I am now reaching 60+ people per post, simply by eliminating the link to my website or this blog in my post. There are little wins in small businesses all the time. These are just a few gems I learned this week. I don't need a ton of business or a ton of followers, as this is not my full-time job. But you certainly can! I learned a few other helpful tips from another seminar I attended yesterday on 20% of the marketing that brings 80% of the high-paying clients. I'll be writing about that one next, say stay tuned! Of course, you can reach even more businesses by signing up with Retail Marketing Academy.