I’ll be the first to admit that I have a soft spot for Facebook. I use the platform every day, and it’s often the first place I look when I wake up in the morning. It’s also where I go to take a break from my day-to-day tasks, to check in on what my friends are up to and to see what’s going on in the world at large. In short, I enjoy using Facebook, and I use it in a lot of different ways.
Nonetheless, there are times when you might want to consider whether or not you need to have a Facebook account to do effective social media marketing (SMM). After all, just because you have a presence on the world’s biggest social media platform doesn’t mean that you have to live by its rules or engage with its users on a regular basis. In other words, you might want to consider whether or not you need Facebook to generate leads and grow your business.
Why Should You Consider An Online Marketing Plan Without Facebook?
To begin with, not all of Facebook’s customers are necessarily people you’d want to connect with. To create content that will engage your target audience, you might want to look into other platforms that can help you get the word out. This could be anything from a blog to a niche social media platform that’s geared towards a specific group of people.
In addition, if you’re looking for an overall picture of how well your content is performing on social media, you might not want to rely solely on Facebook for the data. With every major social media platform offering its own unique set of metrics, you might find it difficult to get an accurate figure for the impact of your content on your target audience. In other words, you might want to consider an online marketing plan without Facebook for the sake of having a complete view of your efforts on social media.
The Downsides of Facebook
While there are many advantages to using Facebook, there are also some significant disadvantages to consider. First and foremost, regardless of whether or not you use the platform actively, you’ll never be completely rid of it. Thanks to it being a popular social media platform, your content will likely end up on Facebook, even if you don’t want it to. As a business owner or marketer, you may not like this much. However, you’ll also never be able to fully control the demographic of your target audience, which can be both a blessing and a curse.
One of the biggest disadvantages of Facebook is that your content may end up being overly promotional. While it’s always preferable to have a mix of promotional and informative content on your blog, on Facebook, all of your content will be heavily tilted towards being promotional.
In other words, it’s quite possible that you’ll attract a lot of people who are simply looking for a bargain or who want to support a specific brand or product. While this may be great for your particular cause or for the brand you’re promoting, in terms of lead generation and brand awareness, you might want to consider an online marketing plan without Facebook.
The Growing Importance of Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
As we’ve alluded to previously, social media marketing (SMM) and search engine optimization (SEO) are often considered to be two sides of the same coin. Essentially, SEO is the process of affecting the ranking of web pages in search results, and SMM is the process of engaging with customers through social media channels.
To that end, SEO can help improve the overall reach and visibility of your business’ website in the digital world. For example, let’s say that you’re the founder of a digital marketing agency that focuses on SEO for small businesses. One of your clients is a travel agency that specializes in luxury travel and wants to target domestic and international luxury travel consumers on their website. In this case, you might want to consider an SEO campaign that aims to increase the number of people who see the luxury travel agency’s website when they perform a search on their mobile devices.
From an SEO standpoint, the travel agency’s website would not only have to appeal to the people who are searching for luxury travel but would also have to stand out from the competition. To achieve this, you could potentially work with the travel agency to improve the layout and usability of their site, as well as to create an SEO-friendly backlink profile. In doing so, you may see an increase in the number of people who see the travel agency’s website when they perform a search on their mobile devices.
In theory, the opposite is also true. That is, having a well-optimized website that’s appealing to the eye and easy to navigate can also help increase the number of people who see your content when they’re searching for relevant data.
Generating Leads Through Niche Social Media Platforms
Depending on your particular business, you may not always want to attract people who are already your customers. This is especially true if you’re looking for new customers. In these cases, you may want to consider using niche social media platforms, which are usually designed for a specific group of people. These are the types of platforms that can help you get the word out to people who are most likely to become your future customers.
For example, if you’re a fitness coach who wants to generate leads for your business, you might want to consider using a platform that’s specifically designed for people who are interested in following a healthy lifestyle. In doing so, you may see an increase in the number of people who see your content, especially since these types of platforms usually require you to engage with your audience through social media.
On the flip side, if you’re a fashion brand that’s looking to expand its footprint into Asia, you might want to consider using social media platforms that are commonly used in the region, such as TikTok.
These are just some of the things to consider if you’re looking to improve your overall reach on social media. With every option having its pros and cons, it’s essential that you choose the right platform, designed for the right audience, to help generate leads and increase your business’ brand awareness.