How do you increase your Facebook presence?

[jn4jenny]

[QUOTE=Kareen;6238939]
Am I the only one who finds excessive sale-horse-posting disturbing?[/QUOTE]

Excessive posting, yes. Occasional posting, no–for example, when you have a new sale horse.

I don’t think anyone’s a fan of posting stuff on Facebook just to post it on Facebook. As one of my research colleagues puts it, “Nobody really cares that you went to the bathroom and found it very satisfactory. But if you found a particularly awesome public bathroom near campus, or you are asking friends to point you to a family-friendly bathroom in an airport, or you’re taking a picture of a totally awesome bathroom sign? That’s a different story.”

[Tapperjockey]

[QUOTE=Kareen;6238939]
Am I the only one who finds excessive sale-horse-posting disturbing? I try to put informative stuff on our FB page, things I feel would be of interest to our clientele. Somehow I think it’s more essential which ‘likes’ I reach than just how many.
Likewise I try not to push myself onto other people’s websites or business pages uncalled for as I think that is not what social media is really about. Creating a network actually invovles interaction. To me interaction does not equal plastering invitations all over the internet but to give and take. There is a lot of FB pollution I try to stear clear of. Our Germanhorseconnection page is lingering around 2.400 likes which is still a bit more than I have friends as a person up there. I’m quite happy with the slow but consistant growth I’ve had and seem to be getting likes from more I actually want to reach than before.
When I still sent out invitations to ‘friends’ I received a lot more likes on the page but I stopped doing that at some point as I’ve found the people who find me by recommendation from others or straight off my website are closer to my target group.

Good advice in this thread I’ll see if I can change the URL that should certainly be helpful.

One thing I still don’t get is how to connect your FB persona closer to your business page. Think I’ll try putting my name with the info… Great food for thoughts thank you Tasker, dags and others![/QUOTE]

Good points. I personally like to see people use the albums… perhaps one with Sale horses, another with breeding mares, another for stallions, etc. I think that keeps the main FB wall clearer for each business.

[okggo]

You know, I’ve been thinking about the “cute” photos thing, and I think it really depends…I have seen quite a few people post pictures of their horses standing at very odd angles in the pasture (and I am certain I can include myself in that list!) and while it might get “likes” it will also turn off potential buyers. It’s a big difference to see a picture and think it’s (the picture is) cute or to see a picture and think “gee I wish that horse was in MY pasture.” I’ve seen some pictures that were so horrible I almost wanted to hint to the owner that the bad photos may be why the horse is not selling (particulary for the pricetag!).

If a photo makes the horse look ‘wrong’ (a leg bent oddly, neck turned at a strange angle, stomping a fly) it can give the impression of conformation flaw that may not exist. I took a picture of my mare the other day where she was turning in a circle to walk toward me and because of the way she was turned and headed it made her look toe-in (she was swiveling around). She is not, and I didn’t post it for fear it would give the wrong impression. It probably would have gotten likes, because it was a cute photo, but for anyone interested in our horses it would have given the wrong impression. I can honestly say I have seen other peoples photos that I ‘liked’ but thought “man that horse looks wierd.”

[Tasker]

Well, you guys asked how I’ve gotten so many fans…so I told you what has worked well for our page. Cute over rides perfect positioning time and again for popularity, comments and likes. But any possible slightly awkward moment is always counteracted by about 50 proper images of horses, so please by all means draw your own conclusions as to what works to draw folks in vs. what doesn’t.

My personal friend list is under 550 people FWIW. The Farm Page is 7674 and counting. We lose about 4 fans per week while gaining a couple hundred. I have a Bachelor of Fine Art degree in Photography, so composition, flattering angles and use of light are second nature and I have a good camera. not again and I joke that I am finally putting my degree to work with all this webwork…

What works for us might not work for everyone else.

ETA: I just put up the morning’s snapshot album - we have the tractor in the big mare pasture putting out 3x3x8’ bales, the bridge crew invading the pasture (shot from on the young stallion), the barn cat, some spring flowers and the cherry trees in bloom. Very exciting stuff but 6 likes in less than 20 minutes…and only one of those is from a person that I know in real life.

[not_again]

It is worth noting that the Watermark Farm fan page is VERY popular overseas. Everyone is interested in learning more about our American Warmbloods. I suspect that having two teams go to the young breeders championships in France last year helps to pique curiosity and worldwide support. Facebook is a great tool to have the world learn more about us. I have friends and the farm has fans from Antarctica, Greenland, Iceland, and other exotic places as well as more normal sized nations like Sweden, Jordan, and Italy.

[TrinitySporthorses]

Wow, I never expected so much valuable information! Thank you all for your tips…I’ll start making some changes ASAP =)

[Justa_Bob]

[QUOTE=Tapperjockey;6238955]
Good points. I personally like to see people use the albums… perhaps one with Sale horses, another with breeding mares, another for stallions, etc. I think that keeps the main FB wall clearer for each business.[/QUOTE]

Yes. Albums!! So much easier to look at since the FB wall is moving target.

Albums with DATES - like 2012 sale horses plus lots of subtitles. Its so frustrating to see photos with no info.

Cleaning out albums to keep everything current is a pain - but the information is correct. Making it clear what is old vs current makes it useful for shoppers.

The idea to post “fun” pix on the wall is great. Not just new for sale. Photos from shows and also updates on what sold horses are doing.

[veetiepony]

What you are doing for one… just “liked” it!

[EquusMagnificus]

I gave you my secret weapon on your page…

[sportnhorse]

Great q, Trinity, I too have wondered the same thing. And, I’ve ‘liked’’ your page too!

Since the internet is the main means of marketing today, we all have to have a presence there otherwise the vast majority of people will not find us or know about our ‘product’. I try to support as many related industries as I can (which I feel are doing a great job and should be in business!) and I hope that they will reciprocate.

Anybody want to ‘swop’ likes, feel free! Send me your links to your pages

[MysticOakRanch]

I post a lot of fun pictures - this time of year especially - Spring means green pastures, wild flowers, beautiful clouds, and FOALS! Totally agree, posed pictures quickly get boring, but if you’ve got a good camera, shoot candid pictures and pick out the best ones.

If you aren’t a photographer, some other ideas that might draw people in - foal birth pools (everyone gets to guess the date/time of foaling, or the color/markings), foal naming contests, “help me pick my stallion” discussions. Also - find old pictures and videos of your mare or stallion’s most famous parents/grandparents/great grandparents. Or currrent news on those same relatives. One of my friends is really good at that kind of stuff - and it generates a lot of fun discussions on their ranch page.

It takes time - if you want to spend some $, you can always pay FB for ads, but most of us are doing it on a budget, so just keep working on it…

[ElegantExpressionsFa]

Thank you for asking that question!! I was struggling with the same “problem” if you will myself!! I am going to try to get some time to read the suggestions from everyone so I can apply it to my farms page.

Oh, and I “liked” your page too

[Sonesta]

Love some of these tips! And I just adopted the idea of having a foaling contest! www.facebook.com/sonestafarms

Inkka is at 324 days today. Visit and guess date/time of foaling and gender/color!

[DawnJL]

To add to what others have said, there are some good resources on facebook regarding how to use social media. Here are a two:
https://www.facebook.com/howtomarketyourhorsebusiness
https://www.facebook.com/smexaminer

a few articles with useful tips:
http://www.squidoo.com/facebook-how-to-use-your-comments-to-sell
http://www.marismith.com/facebook-timeline-for-business-pages-key-points-know/#

(gotta go, but hope these are helpful to someone)

[hluing]

I just wanted to say how much I loved this thread and appreciated the idea. It has really inspired me to be more active on my FB page and the results are increasing…although slowly;) I am in awe of the responce some of you are getting…great job!

[toomanyponies]

Thank you for all the great suggestions everyone!! This is one of the most useful threads in a long time! I didnt even know I could claim a Facebook URL. Who knew? LOL

[sfstable]

[QUOTE=hluing;6244678]
I just wanted to say how much I loved this thread and appreciated the idea. It has really inspired me to be more active on my FB page and the results are increasing…although slowly;) I am in awe of the responce some of you are getting…great job![/QUOTE]

Hey Heather – make sure you go and add a cover image to your FB page

[hluing]

Yes, I actualy did try to add a cover and it somehow undid itself. ??? Maybe the photo was too big? In fact, all my photos end up looking too big and getting cropped. Any advice? I really hate the new page layout and don;t know quite how to deal with it yet. If anyone has hints…I;d love to hear it!

[sfstable]

[QUOTE=hluing;6248974]
Yes, I actualy did try to add a cover and it somehow undid itself. ??? Maybe the photo was too big? In fact, all my photos end up looking too big and getting cropped. Any advice? I really hate the new page layout and don;t know quite how to deal with it yet. If anyone has hints…I;d love to hear it![/QUOTE]

I just adapted one of your photos and posted it to your FB page – it should be the correct size Just copy it and repost it and add it as your cover image. If you would rather a different one – let me know – it only takes me a few minutes to do it.

[tbmorgan]

Wow, what a wonderful and timely thread! I have just recently developed my business presence on Facebook as well as my own website, so the tips and hints here have been extremely helpful (and I haven’t even worked my way through all the posts yet!)
Anyway, I have claimed my FB URL and put it as well as my website in my siggy here, so if anyone is so inclined, I’d love some feedback! Mine isn’t a breeding farm, but it is horse-related!

Thanks,
Katja