“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you’re Facebook’s customer, you’re not – you’re the product,” Bruce Schneier

photo by aleksandr/dpc

In the rush to use social media, advertisers are cramming the Facebook logo everywhere.

They  post it at the end of television commercials next to their own logo. They put in print ads and on billboards; “Find us on Facebook!” is included in radio commercials.

It’s even on store signage, directed at customers who have already found the store in real life.

This is a bad idea.

On the surface, it seems like a good one. After all, millions log onto Facebook at least regularly — why not let them know that the store’s got a page?

Why “Find Us On Facebook” Can Backfire

When your customers go to Facebook, you have no control over what they do next. If they are going to look for you online, you want them on your own site, not on Facebook.

I once heard Dan Kennedy, during a teleseminar, explain the fundamental difference between a store’s website and its Facebook page.

When shoppers land on your web page, he said, it is as if they have walked into your store. You have control over where they go and what they do. You can show them your merchandise, engage them in an online chat, and move them down a funnel that ultimately results in a sale.

As long as they are on your website, they see what you want them to see.

Inviting them to find you on Facebook, Kennedy pointed out, is like walking them out your back door into a carnival in the parking lot. There’s a puppy doing tricks on one side, crazy political speeches happening on the other side.

You have a booth at the carnival. So do all your competitors.

A customer could go to Facebook to look for you, and spend the afternoon watching cat videos instead.

What if they “Like” you on Facebook? Doesn’t that give you a chance to communicate with them on their news feeds?

Not much — Facebook’s changed their algorithm so that the vast majority of your business page fans will never see your updates unless you pay them. Organically, Adweek reports, a page will reach about 2.6% of its fans with a post.

There’s nothing outrageous about this — Facebook’s a business, they have put lot of money, time, and study into building this platform. It’s not your platform, it’s theirs.

“Owners make rules, not tenants. And Facebook owns the lot.” — Michael Hyatt

You aren’t the customer… you’re the product.

This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have a Facebook page or a social media strategy. Your customers are likely to spend time on Facebook, and there’s nothing wrong with having a presence when they look for you.

Your mass media advertising — radio, television, transit or outdoor, direct mail, etc — should drive your prospects to an environment you control. That’s your website, not your Facebook page.

Send them to your store, not the carnival.

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