Author: Ben Pickering

How to Use Facebook Apps to Promote Your Business

August 12, 2013

Is your Facebook Page working for your business?

Have you considered using Facebook apps, but don't know where to start?

In this article I'll highlight some of the most popular uses of apps, as well as a few individual apps, so you can find the right fit for your Facebook Page.

What You Need to Know about Facebook Apps
Apps let you do all sorts of things on your Facebook Page without writing your own code.

You can import your blog, run contests and promotions, collect email

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How B2B Marketers Are Successfully Using Facebook

December 12, 2012

Are you wondering what the secret ingredient is to business-to-business (B2B) marketing on Facebook?

The answer may surprise you.

Facebook, by its nature, is a more compelling consumer communications channel than it is for business-to-business.

Let's not forget that behind every business are consumers. With 900 million active users, you can bet that your target customer is on Facebook.

Data indicates that B2B marketers are still using Facebook at a lower rate than B2C marketers. No matter what type of business you run, think about

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8 Tips for Running Social Media Promotions

June 28, 2012

Have you thought of using social media contests and sweepstakes to build and engage your audience?

Previously I wrote How to Run a Successful Social Media Contest outlining some important foundational steps: be clear on your marketing objectives, know your audience, understand different promotion types and plan ahead!

If you're looking to gain even more traction with social promotions, here are eight additional tips to enhance your next social media campaign.
Ensure Your Promotion Doesn't Get You In Hot Water
It's difficult to run a

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How to Use Facebook Ads: An Introduction

May 3, 2012

Are you considering Facebook Ads but are confused by all the options?

You've undoubtedly heard that "social ads" are the future of advertising, but what does that mean in practical terms for you today?

This article will help you make smart decisions about how to promote your brand and engage with fans through advertising on Facebook.

As a Facebook Preferred Developer, I've had the opportunity to gather a lot of information from the proverbial "horse's mouth."

This article will provide a useful lay of the land around the new ad

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How to Use Social Partnerships to Amplify Your Marketing

December 19, 2011

Would you like to combine forces with another company in a collaborative promotion?

Want to know why this is wise and how to do it? Keep reading…
Going Beyond the Customer
Many marketers have a relentless focus on a single dimension of social interaction: the brand-consumer relationship.

Thinking that the "social" in social media marketing is all about your relationship with consumers is constraining.

Rethinking the role of other relationships can dramatically improve the effectiveness of those very marketing efforts designed to

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Does Facebook Fan-Gating Hurt Facebook Engagement?

October 5, 2011

Fan-gating or Like-gating is the practice of displaying certain content only to users who Like your Facebook page.

It's an increasingly common practice and something I discuss with clients almost daily. But is it a good idea?
What is Fan-Gating?
Fan-gating is accomplished by creating two versions of a tab on your page—one that's shown to users who already Like your page and one to those who have not Liked the page.

The non-fans are encouraged to Like in order to "unlock" the content behind the tab. Because information about whether a

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5 Tips for Driving Facebook Fans to Your Website

August 17, 2011

Are your Facebook fans frequenting your website? Do you want them to?

Keep reading for five ways to drive traffic from Facebook to your company website.
Thoughts on Facebook
While Facebook has become an increasingly significant communication medium, for many businesses and organizations, their website remains the primary consumer touch point.

So what do you do if you want to get your Facebook audience to engage more on your brand site?

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How to Run a Successful Social Media Contest

May 24, 2011

Are you planning to run a social media contest (like this one)?

Today it's possible for anyone to achieve success engaging consumers online, thanks to the growing popularity and relative ease of execution of social media promotions.

The fact that anyone can run a promotion doesn't mean that everyone should, and it certainly doesn't mean that a promotion guarantees social media success. However, if executed as part of a comprehensive social media strategy, social media contests can produce tremendous results no matter how large or small

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