Here’s How to Use Facebook Since Likes Aren’t Worth Much Anymore

TL;DR – Though Facebook Likes aren’t a great metric to focus on anymore, there is still an incredibly valuable way to use Facebook as a platform for your business marketing.

As Facebook decreases how much organic reach it gives page owners, small business owners are wondering how to use the platform.

We know Facebook Likes aren’t a great metric for boosting conversions. Liking a page isn’t the same level of commitment as signing up for an email newsletter, so it’s likely those “fans” aren’t actually ever going to buy from you.

Likes aren’t completely worthless – they’re a decent enough indicator of social proof – but in the test-measure-repeat model of achieving internet marketing excellence, Likes don’t last long.

So if it doesn’t matter to your bottom line whether or not you have a lot of likes, what IS Facebook good for?

There are soooooo many answers to this question I can’t possible answer it entirely here.

But what I can do is talk about my favorite feature of Facebook: the ads.

Why Facebook Ads are a Business Owner’s Greatest Gift

Some people hate Facebook ads….

Those people aren’t marketers.

Because Facebook has so carefully encouraged its users to Like as many pages, movies, books, and other defining attributes as possible, we now have access to one of the greatest self-selecting marketing profile databases ever… perhaps THE greatest.

If you really lock down your audience – what they love, what they don’t love, what makes them tick – you’ll be able to target them as precisely and inexpensively as possible.

For example, one Facebook ad campaign I’m running is allowing me to get qualified clicks to my landing page (a hastily-prepared page converting at only 10%) for $0.05/each. That means I’m getting a new lead for only $0.50. Not bad. If I can make one $5.00 sale to a tenth of my audience, I’m breaking even.

I’ll write a guide on how to identify and target your ideal Facebook audience for the next issues of the TL;DR report.

In the meantime, start thinking about your ideal audience and whether you’d be able to reach them through Facebook.