Newswise — Parents, cousins, grandparents and even the British Monarch have embraced the lure of Facebook. According to Mashable.com, Buckingham Palace is starting a Facebook Fanpage that will feature a mixture of news, links and videos. If you have not yet joined the 500 million people on Facebook, here are some reasons from Rowan University adjunct marketing professor Jennifer Regina on why you should consider becoming part of the growing Facebook family.
Connection: The most basic benefit to Facebook is the ability to connect or reconnect with family and friends. You are able to see instantaneously what family happenings are occurring. Pictures, videos and announcements are easily updated, and you are never left with a feeling of being uninformed. Happy birthday wishes, baby announcements and wedding pictures are posted through Facebook and not sent through the mail anymore.
Promotion: Facebook should be used to promote yourself. If you are also a business owner, then you should be using it to advertise your company, too. “I tell my college students that branding yourself is very important,” Regina said. Create a visual, online portfolio of your education, accomplishments and pictures of yourself. Make sure your avatar image on Facebook is professional and your links and comments reflect your areas of interest. No matter how small your business, you should have a separate Facebook Fanpage established. A Fanpage does not limit you to 5,000 friends, unlike a personal page, and allows you to promote your business on Facebook. Some companies that have a great company Fanpage and have embraced integrating social media into their marketing campaigns are Starbucks, Baskin Robbins, Walgreens and Us Weekly.
Networking: In this economy you should have established a presence on Facebook just to keep your networking current. Facebook allows you to reach out to friends, former bosses and coworkers and to keep informed about potential job opportunities. “I have helped companies in the past find employees by just posting an announcement in my status. It is amazing how fast the word spreads on Facebook,” Regina said.
Awareness: Facebook can become your best source of news. By joining Fanpages and Groups that reflect your interests, you are able to get a constant stream of individualized information to your news stream and your phone. “I find out about marketing news, local news and weather all from my Facebook newsfeed,” she noted.
“Facebook offers so many unique benefits that individuals and companies should be easily and freely taking advantage of to help make their lives and companies more efficient. The first social media site you should investigate is Facebook. The opportunities to learn and communicate and are endless.” Said Regina, who also owns the Washington Township-based marketing firm The Marketing of Everything.
(NOTE: You can follow Regina at her blog at http://themarketingofeverything.blogspot.com or her company website at http://www.marketingofeverything.com.
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