Alberta Business Marketing

Many folks use Twitter status updates on behalf of their brand, instead of as a person. Some folks do both, engage as a person and as a business.
On Facebook, Business pages have been a distinct entity, with quite limited types of engagement being possible in comparison to personal pages.
Well, things have changed. If you have updated your business page profile your changes are live now. If you wait, changes will eventually appear over the next month or so.

Facebook gives business Page administrators the ability to use their Facebook page much like a personal profile. Users of the new profile will see a new link that allows administrators to “Use Facebook as (your business page)”.

Once using Facebook as your page, you have the flexibility to interact with the other areas of Facebook as a page.

• Get notifications when fans interact with your page or posts
• See activity from the pages you like in your news feed
• Like other pages and feature them on your page
• Make comments as your page on other pages

For example, you can “Like” another businesses Facebook Page and interact with that page any time as your business.
When you “Like” other pages (note not individual facebook users), your News Feed will now feature a stream of updates from your page and the pages you have liked. Visitors to your page will have the opportunity to view Everyone’s content on the page – or Your business posts and the comments made on them by visitors.

What I’m most excited about is that administrators can also receive email notifications whenever someone engages with your page, just like a regular profile.  Pretty cool for folks who don’t have the time to check in directly with Facebook to see who is engaging.  This allows brands to interact and engage with visitors to the page  much more easily.

If you haven’t yet, update to the new Business Page format, there are some great new ways to engage with your guests and other pages.

Tags: Facebook, facebook pages
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Why consider advertising your tourism offering on Facebook? It’s a cost effective efficient way to boost your visibility with your ideal guest.

The Travel Industry has one of the highest click through rates and one of the lowest costs per click. The opportunity for accessing the unique market segments that suit your business is high on Facebook because businesses can tailor their advertising to people with interests, activity preferences, demographics and regional locations that match those of your ideal guests.

Tags: Facebook
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Tags: Facebook, media, multimedia, photos, Video
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Facebook is pursuing a trademark on the word “Face” and has filed litigation against a Website that includes the name “book” in their URL.  Some in the accommodation industry may consider that Facebooks new “Check in” service, that has found its way into the mobile version of the website and the Facebook App (accessible to iPhone, iPod, Blackberry and Android devices), might some day pose a threat to the industry standard for guests announcing their arrival at the front desk.

In the meantime, Facebook Places provides a simple, handheld way for your guests to tell all their friends that they are at your location.

Why Facebook’s Places app matters?

• over 50% of web users have an account at Facebook.
• over 90% of people who earn at least $30 000 per year own a cell phone.
• over 35% of cell phones are Internet enabled devices.

It’s a fair guess that 2 of every 10 guests you are serving today has a handheld device and are capable of checking in on Facebook.

Whether an accommodation, food service, beverage service or attraction ask yourself this question.

“Would you like your clients to tell their friends that they are enjoying themselves at your location?”

Go ahead, I’ll give you a second to think about that.

OF COURSE YOU WOULD!!!!  Perhaps friends will come along to join the party, look you up online . . . at the bare minimum, you are going to score credibility points with all the friends of your guests who decide to check-in at your location.

So what do you need to do to encourage your guests to “Check in” on their mobile device?  Ask your guests to check in.

Call your guests to Action.

Give your guests a clear call to action.

Consider posting a sticker on your door, a sign in your waiting area, a rack card at your dining table that invites your guests to “Check in” on their handheld.  Consider offering an incentive to folks who check in – like a coupon for a free coffee on their next visit.

Of course there are a myriad of location-based games and associated apps – Gowalla, Foursquare, etc…. but the granddaddy of “Social” is Facebook.

What do you need to do to get started?

Go to your lobby or guest waiting area, turn on your handheld and point it to Facebook app or mobile website.  Click on the places tab and fill in your location.  If you are the first one to check in, you’ll be able to give your place a title and description.  All others who check in, will announce their arrival with the information you post as well as their own personal note.

Tags: android, app, blackberry, check-in, Facebook, handheld, iphone, ipod, Mobile
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Mary Meeker once again wowed the audience at the Web2Summit in SanFrancisco this week with her overview of trends in tech.  One of the biggest surprises was the revelation that Social Media advertising offers the biggest bang for the buck for advertisers.

Facebook, with it’s social profile advertising advantage – advertisers can target users across a variety of interests, ages and other demographic considerations, is a steal compared to other advertising buys on the Web.  Although it’s not clear where Google Adwords and other Keyword Search advertising would fit in this chart because it only refers to display advertising, Facebook advertising looks like a steal.

Do you advertise on Facebook?  What’s your take on the value proposition?

Tags: Facebook, tourism marketing
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