by Steven Feldman
Floor Covering News is looking for a few good friends. Or likes. Specifically, I’m talking about the FCNews Facebook page, which we set up this past spring.
Facebook has 500 million users, making it the most widely used social media outlet across the globe for both business and personal use. Truth be told, I’m finally getting it. Not that I came late to the party or anything. I probably had my own Facebook page as early as the next guy. I quickly had about 50 friends. But before long my eyes began to burn reading about this one eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on pumpernickel; that one sitting in traffic; this one telling everyone she had a hangnail, and that one inviting me to play something called Mafia Wars. Every day. Talk about friends; the “hide” button was my best friend.
But I’ve had a change of heart thanks to our faithful Web manager, Emily Hooper. She has been proving to me how Facebook can be a vital business tool. And I’m here to tell you liking FCNews—the same as “friending” someone on a personal page—can be mutually beneficial. For example, last week we put out a request to Carpet One dealers to update us on their Tigressa promotion. In the future, when we are working on a story and want some retailer input, we can put the word out on our page. That helps us.
Here’s how it can help you and your business:
1. FCNews regularly updates the news on our website, so when a new article is posted, it is announced on our Facebook page, which is always linked to fcnews.net. The page also lets you know when we have updated our blog, Flickr or YouTube account.
2. Check our Mobile Uploads photo album for same- day photos of an event. We upload from the location. There are also a few exclusive photo albums that were not big enough for Flickr.
And by the way, it’s a two-way street. You can post pictures from your own events to use as an advertising platform. For example, Floor Trader Gulf Coast just shared a bunch of photos of a recent in-store promotion. Our fans can comment on these or any photos, and then can comment on those comments. It’s a great, transparent way to start a dialogue.
3. The dialogue goes beyond photos. Our Facebook page is a good place to have direct input in the magazine. And it’s immediate. Once upon a time you wrote a letter to the editor; now all you do is post a comment to our page. Better yet, FCNews and others can respond. Think of our Facebook page as an extension of the magazine.
4. Our page also offers a link to the Flash version of the publication. If you are on the road or you want to peruse the latest issue of FCNews before it arrives in your mailbox, the page will let you know when the issue is ready for virtual viewing.
5. The FCNews page can connect you to other people in the industry and others with you. So if there is someone who likes FCNews you want to personally connect with, that person is right there. It’s an easy, visible way to network.
FCNews is already the most requested flooring trade publication. Now I want it to have the most “likes.” So here’s what I want you to do. Log on to your Facebook account, search Floor Covering News in the search window, then like us. Drop us a comment and let us know how you’re doing, if there is anything we can do to help you. You will be glad you did.