When it comes to social media what is your (anybody’s) opinion of companies using these sites as an effective way to reach the customer?
Do you really think it is a good way to reach the customers?
And would you use a company found on facebook?
I have seen companies like Bestbuy, Lowes, and more that have pages but does it really work.
Recently I located a heating and cooling company with a page on Facebook. Do they really think someone is going to deal with them before calling a service company in the yellowpages??
Maybe some companies are reaching a little too far.
Is this the kind of Forum this is?? I registered as a new user this morning to answer a thread on small engine failure of which I had a recent experience that I thought would be helpful…After posting my answer…I simply decided to ask a question to the readers here regarding their thoughts on social media sites and the fact that many companies are using them.
BigT…whoever you are…U are a Big Crybaby…and I want to know why I can not post a question here.
He thought you might be a spammer for cardinal air services. Your post does kind of read like a spam post. And of course, the preference here is for traditional usage of punctuation and syntax so when people vary from that, they get harshly judged.
I’ve never used a company based solely on their facebook page. I think a lot of companies jump on the social networking ship but don’t really add any benefits to their customers through it. This is all a guess on my part, though.
I just sent the “webmaster” an email as well as Cecil.
I thank you for your take on the social media thing.
Why would anyone want to ask a question in here if some patroling whiner is going cry foul.
What did I do wrong anyway. The have forum rules here and as long as they are followed nobody should be crying.
Oh well, I found this site when searching google regarding an issue I had and after the problem was successfully resolved I thought I would register in order to help the poster.
BTW: The link was added regarding a company’s page I had discovered…I could have used any company’s…when asking a question isn’t it always good to give an example?
Don’t take it so personally. Your recent join date and question including a link to a commercial site is VERY typical of spam posts.
As to advertising on Facebook. I think it works better for some businesses than others. For a HVAC company that I am unlikely to want to “keep up with” it doesn’t make a lot of sense. For my local homebrew store, it provides an easy way to keep up with specials, classes, etc, that they may be having. I don’t see it as any better or worse than the phone book. Although if you see that a number of your friends “like” a store that is worth something more than the fee that any company can pay to get in the yellow pages.
This post looked like spam to me although I didn’t report it. I don’t use social media to find services, a: because I have real friends who can give me references and b: because links through “social media” are usually corrupted and untrustworthy. Also no way am I clicking on a link posted by someone who just joined this site today.
Smart forum-joiners lurk for a while first to figure out the lay of the land. Spammers do what you just did: Post something fairly stupid and pointless, in the wrong forum, containing a link.
The people on this board are much smarter than average, so unless you get up to speed really quickly, I suspect you won’t be here long.
It is really amazing to me that individuals are so quick to judge another of whom they know nothing off…
It seems that when individuals are distanced it is easy for them to mis-judge and over react to others.
In regards to this being the wrong forum…well that is relative. Take a look …this is the “General Questions” forum…I believe the question was fairly general.
In response to posting the link…well, individuals post links all the time. If an individual does not have an interest in a forum topic, (ie:you), then perhaps they should not repsond.
In terms of me being here long…I do not intend to spend much time here or for that matter any other forum as I do not make a habit of sitting around all day on the internet.
In terms of joining this forum…I registered only for one reason…to address a question regarding small engine failure of which I had some helpful info.
Now, If I could simply stick to the original thread topic…that would be nice. If someone does not like the topic…please do not post a response simply to be cynical.
I think the answer is “yes” with a “but” or “no” with a “depends”.
Take my company for example. It is a small B2B startup that sells CRM related software solutions to large companies. The target audiance for our product is C-level executives and vice presidents of sales organizations. These are not the sort of people who are scouring Facebook and Twitter looking for someone to implement software.
But of course since we are a “hip startup” founded by a bunch of management consultants, we have a disproportionate amount of resources dedicated to retweeting links to blogs, uploading whitepapers, reaching out to industry “thought leaders” and posting pictures of us doing bullshit community service stuff on our Facebook page. While it is important for a company of our size to have some sort of online presense, ultimately the sort of business we are in requires dedicated sales professionals reaching out to and building relationships with senior corporate leadership at target companies. Not getting some blogger no one gives a shit about to mention us on his web site.
however I suppose that if one was a retailer or coffee shop…well many of their clients may spend alot of time on social networking site and so perhaps using social platforms is an easy way to gain business through online coupons and such…
One of the top executives with a major credit card company recently stated that he believes that soon enough smart phones will take the place of the actual credit card…
I am not too thrilled about how advanced technologies have become.
To further what Baracus said, nobody is going to follow a HVAC installer to see if they have a special this week on a 4 ton system.
But and this is a big but, if your business has a facebook page with lots of likes, a strong set of reviews on Yelp, and an excellent webpage, it can bring phone calls for estimates which will result in increased business.
I work for an independent auto repair shop. We have an active facebook page, a very strong set of reviews on yelp, YP.com, Google etc.
We generate a large percentage of our new business from people that need a new shop, and find us though these channels. I’ve haven’t run the numbers, but I would guess that about 60% of our new business comes from social media/internet searches. The balance being referrals from existing customers and the odd telephone book fingers doing the walking.
Well, at least it’s not a question about people who have reached the rank of General.
Regarding the OP:
Businesses create Facebook pages because: 1) It’s free and easy to do; 2) There’s a general perception that Facebook is increasingly the primary or even sole means by which the more and more people commune with the world–so why not try it.
You can find a Facebook page devoted to just about anything (for example paper clips).
Big companies like these sort of pages because it provides a personal touch to their corporate face. And companies often split their services. In radio it works especially well, encouraging listeners to interact with the station’s show in new ways and adding value to their broadcasts.
As others have noted, your post looked like spam. If it isn’t, the mods will simply move the thread to the appropriate forum. No big deal, unless you make it so.
Imo companies that have Facebook pages are doing it for the free advertising. That, and they don’t want to be caught on the short side of the latest “thing.” Plus they get to put the little f in their ads. Doesn’t sway me to use or boycott the company though.
