by Lorraine Ball
Even before the pandemic we saw business interactions shifting online. Consumers looked for products and interacted with potential service providers through their website and company Facebook pages.
However, when I talk with many contractors they are frustrated by the lack of engagement and results they are getting from their Facebook pages.
Does this sound familiar? You regularly share coupons, promotions and reminders to schedule an appointment, but it is rare anyone clicks through to your website to redeem it or schedule an appointment.
Why isn’t Facebook working well for these companies? Usually it is because they are treating Facebook like any other advertising platform, and not a social network.
People come to Facebook to check in with friends, share a joke, trade a recipe or get a daily dose of inspiration. Contractors who invade the newsfeed with ads promoting coupons for clean and checks or air filters seem out of place in their news feed.
So how do you get people to pay attention to you? On social media you need to share content that is personal, funny or inspiring. If you focus too much of your content on posts designed to sell, sell, sell readers are likely to ignore, ignore, ignore!
The first step to humanizing your content is to treat Facebook like a backyard barbecue where the conversations are personal and informal. Imagine you are enjoying a beer and burger outside on a bright sunny afternoon surrounded by friends. What would you say about your business in that setting?
Not sure what you should talk about? Here are a few ideas to get your started.
Give People a Look Inside
At Roundpeg, we share photos and short videos of life at the ‘Peg or our home offices. There are screen grabs of our Zoom calls and pictures of the cats which are sure to inspire comments, shares and the occasional new fan.
Even if you aren’t a quirky marketing company you can be funny and personal in every industry. There was a sheet metal fabrication company we worked with that mixed photos of their employees playing paintball and a wedding photo of the company owner along with images of their manufacturing floor.
One local contractor played Elf on a Shelf, posting a daily photo of the cute Elf on job sites, in the office and driving a truck.
Your customers want to know who is going to come into their home, so ue you Facebook page to introduce new employees. When they share the post to their timeline your company will be introduced to their friends and family as well.
Share Your History.
If your company has been around a while, dig through your archives. Old advertisements and photos of team members when they were younger make terrific content to share on Facebook. Annual anniversary posts give your community a chance to celebrate with you.
Laugh a Little
You have a sense of humor; you don’t have to leave it a home. Bring a little humor to your Facebook page. During one particularly long, cold winter that stretched well into March, most of us were convinced the famous groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil was wrong, confused or incompetent.
Playing on that theme a HVAC contractor shared a post about criminal charges being filed against Phil. The caption and the picture made me stop, laugh and remember that contractor.
Introduce your customers
Social media is about ego, so use that fact to your advantage. People naturally love it when you talk about them. Share examples of your work and photos of completed projects, feature thank-you notes and encourage reviews. And don’t forget to say thank you. The point is to make your customers feel appreciated.
It is not all fun and games.
If you engage your community, you will earn the right to share a bit of promotional content as well. Just be a good host. Entertain the guests so they want to talk with you. They will look at your coupons if they have come to care your business.