Facebook – Good or Bad for Small Business?

by Cal Braunstein

Facebook and for that matter Google, captures every interaction that occurs to which it has access.

 

Small business owners have been led to believe that it is imperative to have a presence on Facebook. While it is true that it may add to customer loyalty and new business, it can also cost them customers and revenues.

Small business owners need to know whether Facebook is a net positive or negative for the business and act accordingly. 

Everyone knows they need a social presence and having a Facebook page is a common requirement.

But is that a good thing?

The answer depends upon the aim of your online marketing strategy, where your customers are, and how your customers wish to interact with you. If it is used just for outbound marketing, it may be costing you customers and business.

Even if you go beyond that and use it as a two-way marketing or sales tool, you could be exposed and lose more than you gain.

Why? Because your competitors are watching, targeting your customers, and looking for ways to grab your business.

Even Mark Zuckerberg does not trust his own data to Facebook.

When asked by one of the U.S. congressmen if he would be willing to share with the committee where he stayed the prior night, the Facebook CEO, after deep thought, declined. He knows that there are others tracking his actions and looking for ways to use that information for their advantage, possibly to his detriment. 

Learning the Truth

Facebook, and for that matter Google, captures every interaction that occurs to which it has access.

So whenever anyone clicks onto your Facebook page, they know and collect the data. Moreover, Facebook has placed cookies on your system so that it can track your activities on other Internet sites. So where is the harm?

They use the data two ways: in aggregate and individually. 

Let’s take the example where an individual goes to your company Facebook pages to buy a widget.

That person clicks through the various pages and gets to the purchase page and finds your prices are too high, delivery is too long, or you don’t have the exact item in stock. So the individual abandons the cart and moves to another site. 

Next page- Over time, Facebook has a detailed profile on your customer.