Ten things you need to know about Facebook

Who uses it?

Since its inception in February 2004, Facebook has grown significantly. The average user spends 20 minutes a day actively using Facebook by uploading photos, sending messages, or even having discussions within a group.

The highly coveted demographic (from 18 to 25 years old) is 52% of Facebook’s userbase, averaging 30 to 45 minutes each day on the site.

  What can you find on it?

If people have an interest, it's usually part of Facebook. All a user has to do is enter a topic, like “golf societies” or “new technology,” into the search box and hit the “search” button. Up to 1,000 profiles will be displayed, 20 at a time, starting with people in the user’s network.

If a user, who belongs to a US golfing society network, searches for accommodation providers in Ireland who offer golf holidays, the results returned would include people in the US golfing society network first, followed by those in other networks.

From that point, a user can contact others by sending a message or, if that user has a group, by clicking on the “invite to group” button. The user will see an increased number of members joining and participating in the group’s message board discussions.

Why are people using Facebook?

For one thing, it’s an easy icebreaker. Imagine a person who likes walking, specifically hill-walking. In an attempt to find people who like the same pursuits, the person can enter the term "hill-walking" into the Facebook search box.

Facebook will then locate up to 1,000 users who have a similar interest. The user can send messages to the people whose profiles came up during the search and set up a hill-walking society from his or her own computer.
 
Certain people join Facebook just to have their own place to upload photos so they can share them with friends and family. Other users offer competitions to Facebook followers, for example, as a reward for uploading photos of scenic areas of Ireland.

Entrants to the competitions can be awarded prizes. This not alone entices entries but maintains a high Facebook profile for the business.

How are advertisers using Facebook?
 

Along with setting up a business page on Facebook, advertisers are increasingly viewing this medium as a means of selectively targeting demographic groupings to match their own sales and marketing strategies. They can choose their audience by location, age and interest, and begin to build a community around their business.

They can also avail of a very practical approach to resource planning, whereby they can set, monitor and control their daily spend.
 
Using Facebook to advertise can be invaluable. As a promotional tool, it has huge practical, low-cost potential. Say a local festival is planned for an area, and the organisers wish not only to promote the event, but send out a call to groups associated to the theme of the event for input/ support.

Using Facebook, they can simply type in the name of the theme being promoted and get a larger base to send promotional materials to. Local businesses can then align themselves to the event and expand the range of products and services to attract attention and, through competitions, offer a further enticement to targeted groups to engage further.

Who else is using it?

More than half of Facebook users are no longer in college or university, while users 25 and older are now the fastest growing demographic for the social networking site. The average age seems to be creeping up and mature users are becoming more and more prominent.
 
As they say, if you're not in, you can’t win, so by tapping into this network and carefully choosing your target demographic, you increase the potential of getting your business name tossed into the web-hosting fray. The more people who talk about your product/ services to their friends, the more chances you get to increase business.
 
People use Facebook to keep in touch, often using the Groups tool to invite former colleagues and friends to upcoming events, such as festivals, product launches and presentations. All of these are opportunities to get your business name profiled.

What kind of groups use Facebook?

There are countless groups now on Facebook, from political groups to current events to self-promotional campaigns.
 
Within the groups, users are free to post photos and write on the group’s “wall,” (a type of forum) to speak with others who share their interests. Political groups and “just for fun” groups are not the only options, however.

There are a number of Facebook groups for professional organisations, such as the Library 2.0 Interest Group, Media 2.0 and the Irish Hospitality Institute (IHI).
 

Why do so many people share their photos on Facebook?

Uploading photos is simple, thanks to Facebook’s easy-to-use interface. The browser-based programme shows a grid of thumbnail-sized pictures while the user clicks a checkbox on the photos he or she wants to upload.

Sharing photos is a convenient way for users to connect with their friends and groups. Posting your own photos and running competitions inviting Facebook followers to post their own to your business page can be a great way of increasing your profile and engaging with your audience. 

How can you find old friends and new colleagues?

By using Facebook’s search feature, a user just needs to type someone’s name and four options (send message, poke, view friends, and add to friends) will appear next to a small thumbnail picture of the person.

If the person shares a network with the user and allows non- friends to see his or her profile (see the section on privacy settings below), a user can click on the thumbnail picture, which brings up relevant data about the person, such as educational information, musical tastes, and favourite TV shows, among others.
 
A user can also search for people from any network simply by typing a portion of the network’s name in the search field, then clicking on the relevant network.

What about privacy?

Facebook allows users to control their thumbnail views, which is shown when another user searches based on a name or keyword. Everyone can use Facebook’s privacy settings to control who can see his or her full profile.

If a user is in a network and another person’s profile is public, he or she can click on the thumbnail picture to view the profile. Likewise, if the profile options are set to private, the user must be “friends” with the second party to view the profile.

There is also an option to show only a limited profile, which is user-defined by the privacy settings. (Source: Krivak, T; Ten things you need to know about Facebook.)

What's the best way to set up a professional account?

An effective Facebook page can really augment a marketing strategy. Your main objectives should be to increase brand awareness and PR, to drive indirect revenue and to increase customer loyalty. When building your professional account, never lose sight of these three crucial targets.

• To increase brand awareness and PR
• To drive indirect revenue
• To increase customer loyalty

With these objectives in mind, visit the ehow website for more detailed guidance on how to get the most from your Facebook page.