7 Facebook Myths – Is it Doomed?

We discussed this topic on a recent Success City Radio Show, so I decided to share  the show notes.  So much is written and talked about regarding the largest social media platform in history, that we thought it would be fun to discuss some of the popular myths out there about Facebook.

Myth 1) Facebook is for the young. Nope the older demographics are the fastest growing. One of the saddest issues facing older folks is they often fall victim to isolation. Social media is actually helping many feel connected AND listened too. By joining groups and using messaging, older Facebook users can vent till their hearts content. Many active older Facebook users are gathering a following and helping promote causes they feel strongly about. Not a bad way to keep the older among us engaged.

Myth 2) You have privacy on FB. Let me see if I can clarify this one from the Edward Snowden lesson plan. There is no such thing as privacy anymore, least of all on the web. A recent conversation with a single business woman reminded me how worrying about something you can’t control can really mess things up; in her case, her brand. Years ago someone gave her the advice that if you were a single woman living in Las Vegas, (would it matter where?) that you should not use your last name on social media. This woman is in real estste sales. So following the advice, she used her first name and middle name. The later she became successful and was getting known professionally by her first and last name. Her brand on social media did not reflect her professional name so it was doing her little good. After years of diluting her brand with a mix of names, she is still trying to crawl her way out of the digital mess that following the “helpful” advice created.

Myth 3) Having no privacy on FB is a bad thing. Privacy is gone. Use it for what it is – a tool to promote yourself and your business. Skip the illusion that privacy exists and think of it as a benefit instead. Then post and share the things that help to build up the image you want presented.Myth 4) Facebook is free. Ba Haa!!! Sorry about that. Free? Yes. Of any benefit for free, not really. The platform is monetized now. Your business posts are as good as invisible unless you promote them. Face it and you will be able to embrace it. It is a very cheap way to advertise.

Myth 5) Using Facebook is a waste of time. Well…….that depends. That cheap advertising I mentioned is one reason I would have to say this is not true. You can get ninja powerful results for very little money. The time part is the problem. You may need to spend hours and hours learning how to use the very sophisticated advertising platform in order to get those results if you do not know what you are doing. And Facebook doesn’t make it easy to use the advertising effectively. They make it easy to “boost your post” or “promote your page” but that isn’t the most cost effective way to advertise. The “Ads Manager” and “Power Editor” are useful tools found buried in the site and using them can be very effective, but it takes a lot of time to learn them.

Myth 6) You need a lot of fans. Google an article from years ago by Kevin Kelly called “1000 True Fans” to find your answer. Go ahead I’ll wait.

A lot of businesses just need real fans not a large number of disconnected so-called fans. Most business get the idea that a lot of fans make them look popular. This can lead to a whopper of a mistake. The worst thing you can do is to buy fans for one of those “Get 5ooo fans for $29.99 sites.  It will literally render your Facebook Fan page useless. Any money spent on future ads is wasted and the page will become a wasteland of posts no one actually sees.

Myth 7) Facebook will be around forever – does it deserve to be? Is it Doomed? There are multiple reasons I ask these questions:

1) It is not clear to advertisers how it works. And many of the rules are punitive. For example: You cannot promote an image that has more than 20% text on it. No matter what you paid your graphic designer to create it for you.

2) It is constantly changing and it is hard to stay current on best practices for posting, tagging and sharing content.

3) Facebook decides what good content is, not you or your fans. For example, the very popular “memes” are now considered spam by the platform.

4) There is no forgiveness for expensive advertising mistakes.

5) They are often criticized for poor customer service. How long did it take you to find the “help” tab?

6) The platform is constantly changing based on what they want for you rather that what you the user may want. Remember the “timeline” changes and “highlights”?

With very little consideration for what customers want it is hard to see how any business can stay relevant. But it is the 800 pound gorilla right now. The again, so was Myspace.