I recently received a question asking, “Is it still worth it to have a Facebook account for your business?”
My answer? Maybe, maybe not. I really depends on your audience, where they’re hanging out, and what kind of content you’re producing.
Unfortunately, we’ve really seen the power of Facebook decline over the past few years and I no longer see it as important as it used to be.
Once upon a time, Facebook was the driving force behind MoneySavingMom.com. But our Facebook numbers have continued to plummet with each passing year.
That being said, there are still some really great reasons to have a Facebook account for your business. Here are the top three:
1. Live video.
Most of our Facebook posts usually only show up in the newsfeed for a handful of our followers — about 1-3% of our total Facebook audience, and that’s on a good day.
Facebook Live videos, on the other hand, are the one type of Facebook post that I continue to see fantastic interaction and reach on.
As you’ve heard me say over and over again in the past, live video is such a powerful tool for connecting personally with your community.
And the Facebook Live platform is SO much more intuitive than Instagram. It’s super easy to leave comments and links. And after you finish the video, you can even go in and edit the teaser text, add more links, interact in the comments, and respond to questions with a live link.
It also stays up on your Facebook page forever and people can easily share it with their friends. Plus, they offer the ability to pay to boost your video and show it to more people.
Translation: a LOT more people usually see your live video on Facebook than on Instagram. (And sometimes videos even go viral!)
Facebook Live is a really powerful tool on Facebook and I think it single-handedly makes it worth it to still have a Facebook account. If you plan to connect with your audience via live video, you definitely want to have a Facebook account for your business!
2. Facebook groups.
Over the past couple of years, we’ve experimented quite a bit with Facebook groups. And I’ve found them to be SUCH a great way to network, interact, ask questions, and get to know your audience better.
As I already mentioned, only a handful of people will see something that you post to your Facebook page. But when you post something in a Facebook group, it will be seen by a much higher percentage of people — especially if the group is really active.
We have a Facebook group for Your Blogging University students and for Money Saving Mom Deal Seekers. And both have been really successful!
Facebook groups are also great if you have courses for students. They provide a platform for students to network with each other as part of going through the course. Or, you can even run an entire course or coaching group through a Facebook group — for FREE!
3. Facebook messenger.
While we’ve only been experimenting with this for the past few months and it’s pretty complicated to figure out, we’re having fun learning how to market through Facebook messenger.
Using Facebook chatbot programs, you can actually contact people directly through Facebook messenger so that you can tell them when there’s a new post up or when you are going to go live on video or to ask them to engage with you in other ways. You can even use this to provide information that will ultimately lead to product sales or email newsletter subscribers.
It’s basically like a subscription list to contact people through their Facebook inbox in mass. It’s a really valuable tool — and the open rates on Facebook messenger are incredibly high.
If you are on the fence about setting up a Facebook account or wondering if it’s still worth it, I hope this helps you think through why Facebook might still be worth it for you and your business.
I’d love to hear from you! Have you noticed that Facebook is still worth it? What benefits are you still seeing on your Facebook page? Let us know in the comments!
Facebook continues to be my highest source of traffic. It’s so easy for my followers to share posts and have my posts go viral. If you have a local following it’s an absolute must.
That’s so interesting and so great to hear!
I think having a Facebook page is more dependent on your age. I set up a personal Facebook page, within the year Facebook started, at the invitation of a friend, and even after that invite it still took me ages to decide to sign up. I was in my 40s which is over the age that Facebook is geared at. For the first couple of years I was on fairly regularly interacting with others and sharing photos. By the time I hit 50 I was just too old for Facebook and visited less and less. If I’m on 5 minutes a month now, that’s a lot for me. It’s been years since I posted a photo. Usually there’s only one day that I’m on Facebook for more than a few minutes and that’s to thank my friends for birthday greetings, which I skipped doing this year due to being out of town for a week over my birthday, so I’m getting away even from that!
As for a Facebook page under my blog’s name, I have thought about it, but I’m not convinced it’s the right move for me. My blog is geared more to middle aged women who are probably past the age where Facebook is of much interest. I think Facebook is a waste of time for my audience.
With all the security problems and other issues going on with Facebook and the sneaky founder dodging questions, is this a platform that’s right for me?
That being said, I think depending on a blog’s content and the age of their audience, Facebook could be a valuable social media addition, especially for the reasons you mentioned. None that interest me, but are reasons other bloggers should consider.
Thanks so much for sharing your perspective!
The Facebook Messenger idea is really cool! I never thought about using it that way. I’d love to learn more about how to set it up.
We are using Many Chat and still just experimenting a lot so that I can hopefully help teach more about how to use it well sometime next year!
Agreed on ALL three points! Fb definitely isn’t the place to put all your business marketing hopes in, but I continue to *love* fb for the Live videos and especially the groups. Groups are a fantastic place to learn more about your niche, build your reputation, provide value, and even market yourself.
Thank you for these!
Yay! I’m glad that you feel the same as me!
FB is where I do most of my interacting with customers, pattern testers, and followers. I’m just now learning how to do Video and they have a better response than a written post. I do have a group as well. FB is not dead, it’s just changed drastically and as a new blogger and business owner, it is my lifeline.
This is great to hear! And so insightful! Thanks for sharing!