Facebook Hiatus: Week 4
In the last week of my Facebook hiatus, I have to admit that I’ve been pretty hard on social media. So to end my month on a positive note, here are some of the great things that social media offers…
In the past month without Facebook I have written what could be seen as social media bashing, but this was not my intent. I have simply explored life beyond the constraints of the everyday Facebook usage. But to be fair, I would like to devote this post to an optimistic view of social media, Facebook specifically.
Big Money
A recent article in Entrepreneur states that Facebook added more than $200 billion to the global economy. This is not chump change, with over $200 billion and 4.5 million jobs created in 2014 alone. These figures are based on Facebook employees as well as those behind Facebook mobile apps and games. With 1.35 billion users visiting Facebook monthly, the global economy is affected and so far it’s all good news.
Life Saver
Facebook has harnessed its 1.35 billion monthly users for a force of the greater good with the announcement that they are now beginning to incorporate Amber Alerts within news feeds. Facebook recently joined forces with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) to post sharable Amber Alerts in effort to broaden the search for missing children across the country.
Getting Better All the Time
Facebook has decided that they have had enough of being the platform used to spread misinformation and fear-mongering tactics. Posts containing links to outside sources will now have a feature that will allow them to be marked as hoaxes, scams or deliberately misleading. Now this isn’t to say you can mark your uncle’s crazy, paranoid status updates as hoaxes, but we might be able to pull some of the fuel from the fire by tagging his sources as unreliable.
Business Strategy
Businesses can get a big boost by incorporating social media strategies into their marketing plans. Here are some tips on how to make the most of Facebook and other social media outlets.
- Be sure to add Facebook connect buttons to your company website.
- Be responsive when customers take the time to reach out to your business.
- Offer interesting information, not just that pertaining to your specific industry.
- Don’t be shy – it’s ok to boast on social media.
- Partner up with other small businesses – the more the merrier.
- Review your strategy regularly to find what is working and what is not.
So, that being said, with only one week left of my self-imposed Facebook vacation I have to admit that I will be glad to get back to all the good and bad characteristics that Facebook has to offer. I want to thank all of the readers who have kept up with my progress for the long month of January! Be sure you keep up with Midphase.com/blog to see what February holds!