Facebook Likes Are Useless
All of a sudden, there seems to be a huge amount of social media “experts” all happy to take your hard earned money to get your Facebook business pages working for you.
One of the major focuses most business owners seize on is getting more Facebook “likes.” Facebook now gets more traffic than Google, so it makes sense that it should be a good site to market on. And if lots of people “like” your Facebook business page, that’s good, right?
Nope, it doesn’t mean a thing….
Facebook Likes Do NOT = $$$
Facebook business page owners like things that can be measured. So the number of likes seems a good way to measure your success. Many business owners see a growing number of likes as a sign of social media marketing success.
So what is the problem with this?
The problem is that Likes are not Sales. You can’t use your Facebook likes to pay your bills, buy groceries, travel or pay your employees. You need real money for that – money generated from actual sales.
When you mention this to your social media “expert” they will explain that these likes are “branding” you.
But What About Branding?
Branding is for cows – and they don’t like it much either!
There is a lot of confusion about branding. Here is my rogue definition:
“Branding” is the lame excuse advertising companies and marketers use when your campaign with them didn’t result in any sales.
They couldn’t get you sales so they say that they have helped build your brand in the public’s mind. This is one of those esoteric, hard to measure things so it gets them off the hook.
Ok, let’s see if likes help people connect with a “brand.”
A single like means one person once came to your page and clicked on a Like button. Ok, this sounds somewhat useful – they should at least have been exposed to the marketing messages on our Facebook business page, right?
Are Likes From Real People?
But what if those likes weren’t from a real person? There are a ton of places online where you can buy thousands of likes. Most of these are from “like farms” – thousands of Facebook accounts set up for no other purpose than to generate and swap likes. Using a service like this, you can easily get 10,000 likes in a few weeks.
But these people are not going to buy your products or services.
A Facebook Like is NOT an Engagement
Why do people go to Facebook? They go to socialize, see the latest pictures of their friends, and family and see what others are up to.
Unlike Google where people may be searching for a product to buy, most usually visit Facebook to socialize.
So, even if they do “like” a product or brand once, they are not usually referring it to others. That single like they did to get a coupon may be the only time they every interact with your brand on Facebook.
So What Does Work On Facebook?
Facebook can still be a good way to market – but you need to drop the unhealthy focus on likes. Instead, measure true engagements. How much are your fans actually mentioning your product? Are they commenting on your Facebook posts>
These numbers show a truer picture of how people engage with you on Facebook.
So don’t fall for the branding argument or a straight likes campaign that can be manipulated. Instead, ask your Internet Marketing Coach how to determine REAL Facebook engagement.
I totally agree with what you say – my wife was telling me only the other night about how many likes she had – but I just looked at how much fabric we have sold and it’s pitiful. People are coming to our site but not really buying.
I’m with you John. This is why “likes” are not really that useful. Traffic that doesn’t convert doesn’t help pay the bills.
yep totally agree. I much prefer fans to comment or tag my photo’s rather than just like them.
For photo’s tag are much more useful, your potential audience goes up exponentially when someone is tagged.
Totally agree. I’ve liked 364 pages and never once recommended one or have interacted with them. If you want to use Facebook as a means of marketing – make it personal, market yourself! If you make cotton balls then let your friends know you make the best! Over 3 years I have obtained 6 major clients by just being myself on Facebook, staying away from politics, religion, foul language etc. and just in a subliminal way showing them that I am passionate about what I do. I also like their posts, wish them a happy birthday and so, so much more. Sorry Facebook – your business pages….are useless.