Why Your Obsession Over Facebook Likes Is All Wrong
“Need 100,000 REAL Facebook page likes for $50” – one of the most common themes when it comes to Facebook-related jobs on freelancing platforms, and I hate it.
It wouldn’t be as bad if those were just some isolated cases. Sadly, it looks like such attitude is universal across the entire world, in small and big companies that are just asking to get more likes because “our competitor has twice as many!” – when and where did it all go wrong?
Maybe it’s because the vast majority of marketers grew up using traditional marketing channels, such as print, radio or TV, which they are trying to replicate on the internet – getting their product in front of as many people at the lowest price as possible and expecting that some of them will eventually give up and buy it.
Or maybe it’s because social media is still a relatively new channel and, as we all know it, measuring the return on social media is complicated (but not impossible). I guess this is also why many marketers decided to take the lazy path and focus on things that are the easiest to measure – changes in the number of fans, organic reach, and impressions – further spreading this paranoia, but at least keepings their bosses happy.
But it is wrong, and it must stop.
Looking at Facebook, I would identify two main reasons why a business would choose to be there:
- to build/strengthen a community,
- to generate sales (and yes, they can go hand in hand, but not necessarily).
In both cases, the sheer number of likes is absolutely irrelevant – page likes don’t have any intrinsic value, unless… they are contributing to your end goals – end goals?..
A Facebook fan is just a means goal, not an end goal: you could easily build the biggest Facebook page in the entire world by farming fans, but what good would that bring to your business?
A Facebook like is a means goal because it is only a mean to achieve your business goals, such as: solving customer complaints, driving traffic to your webpage, receiving newsletter subscriptions, generating leads, sales, event bookings or even actual store visits – things that are actually important to your bottom line, wouldn’t you agree?
And that, in return, should completely change your strategy.
First, don’t even think about buying Facebook likes from third-party sellers – it will be only your fault when you start seeing an influx of random fans from Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Philippines or similar countries (I warned you!). Although using the Get More Likes feature can be a waste of your money too.
Second, instead of just using Page Like campaigns and targeting people by interests, how about targeting a Custom Audience to attract your current clients or subscribers? Or how about remarketing to everyone who visited your website, those that are already interested in what you have to offer, through Website Custom Audiences? Or simply focusing on promoting your best content, so that only those who are truly interested in what you have to say will hit the “Like Page” button and become a fan?
If your goal is to strengthen your community and increase customers’ loyalty, define the actions accordingly. Rather than just broadcasting daily messages, focus on providing value to your audience and engaging your fans one at a time – that means asking questions and responding to their comments at the very least, and not treating your fans as morons.
And if your sole goal is to generate sales, forget about page likes entirely and launch highly targeted advertising campaigns to reach the audience you want.
By doing this, you will direct your efforts and money more effectively and receive higher return on Facebook.
Just please, stop your obsession over Page Likes already and redefine your strategy based on your end goals.
Will you?
And if you need some help with defining the most optimal Facebook strategy for your business, schedule a one-on-one coaching session with me.