Posted 10/3/2011
By Angie Kilbourne, AAM

Web Wise: Why You Can't Ignore Facebook

I came across an interesting chart on BusinessInsider.com that pointed out the average total minutes of Internet consumption on Facebook grew 69 percent for the period of March 2010 to March 2011 in the United States, while total minutes for other static websites declined 9 percent. While I am not advocating you throw all of your marketing efforts into Facebook, it is one avenue automotive repair facilities don't use regularly for promotion. Let's take a look at some strategies to employ.

• Learn how Facebook works and follow its Terms of Service: If you haven't already done so, head over to Facebook's Small and Medium Business Marketing page at facebook.com/smbmarketing. The resources section and videos will walk you through some of the best marketing practices in use. When you're done there, reacquaint yourself with the Terms of Service you agreed to when you set up your page. The link can be found on every Facebook page in the bottom navigation.

• Become the "Go-To Expert" for your followers: Offer up your hard-won automotive knowledge on your Facebook business page. Create a "resource center" tab that is full of up-to-date information about automotive repair and service. Encourage thoughtful conversation on your page by asking customers questions, or turn it into fun and games by posting automotive trivia questions.

• Be active and be seen: Make it a point to post something every day to your site, and comment on a few customers' posts each day. It doesn't have to take you hours to do this; set aside 20 minutes and select a few followers to converse with. Check back after lunch and comment again if it's appropriate. If you are friends personally with followers, you can post to their profiles; if you are only set up as a business page, you will only be able to comment on their pages.

• Measure your successes (or lack thereof): Be sure to add social tracking code to your Google Analytics code on your site to measure when people take a social media action - such as clicking the "Like" button on your site - on your website. Step-by-step instructions for implementing this move on your own website can be found on SocialMediaExaminer.com at http://tinyurl.com/3mdn3ds.

ASA Web Ways: ASA Helps You Find Media Outlets

So, you've completed your first press releases, with help from ASA's PR Kit (found in the Members Only section of ASAshop.org). Now, where do you send it? ASA's Taking the Hill legislative website offers a free media/news outlet finder. You can search locally and nationally at http://capwiz.com/asashop/dbq/media/