Yesterday, after writing a post asking my friends, on my personal Facebook profile, what they thought about the idea, I sent all of them a request to like my Facebook business page. I did this despite much trepidition. Aside from being slightly nervous about sharing with the world a project that is still very much in its development stages, I was concerned that I may be spamming my friends, most of whom may never use or need my services.
The reaction to my post on my personal page was overwhelmingly supportive. I have a wonderful crew of people in my life, and many of them offered me words of encouragement. This emboldened me, at least in that I knew that many of my Facebook friends would not be bothered by the request to like my business page. But still, I was hesitant. I have always tried to separate my personal life from my professional life. Despite the positive reactions I was getting from my friends, I still feared that I was being spammy, and that I might upset the Facebook algorithm. Facebook is ardently anti-spam, as it should be, and sending out a mass invite, is well, very much like spam. Please read this article by Blak Sheep Creative which lays out why asking your friends to like your business page is a bad idea.
During the afternoon, as my post was still gathering likes, and comments of support, I had a very constructive conversation with a contact whose opinion I respect. They mentioned that mass adding contacts might not be the most efficient way to build an audience for a business page. They suggested I use a more targeted approach, reaching out not only to contacts that would be more apt to be future clients, but also peers in my field. This is very sage advice. Advice that I will absolutely follow on different social platforms, like LinkedIn for example. Every social platform has a different userbase and each has its own unique standard of social engagement. Following the 'rules' and studying the demographics of social media platforms is a must in figuring out how to build an audience. If you want to take a deep dive into social media demographics check out this article by Khoros.com
Let's just say I may have spent too much time humming and hawing about whether to press the select all button on my business page. It was getting late in the afternoon, I figured if I was going to maximize the goodwill I had received from my post earlier in the day, then I had better press the button. So, I closed my eyes, pressed select all, then walked to the kitchen to pour my 100th cup (estimated) of coffee for the day. Despite some misgivings, and counter some great advice, I thought, considering that I had an already organic, homegrown audience, one that I knew well, and that are seemingly very supportive, I might as well let them join in on the ride. Their advice and support as I continue along this digital marketing journey will be immeasureable. They are more than vanity stats, they are the folks who have helped me grow through word-of-mouth, and by just believing in me. So thank you friends, Digital Lane is nothing without you.
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