Facebook Pages: Are They Still Relevant for Virtual Office Based Businesses? Yes!

There is much debate these days over the continuing relevancy of Facebook pages. Stories about failed Facebook marketing plans are becoming increasingly abundant, and it seems like almost every day there is some new critic predicting the demise of the social media giant. So, what's a virtual office based business to do? Should you leave Facebook behind and concentrate on newer social media platforms like Twitter and Tumblr, or even eschew social media altogether? The reality is that, even though all kinds of businesses are turning away from Facebook, this form of social media is here to stay, and leaving Facebook behind could mean a huge loss of sales for you and your virtual office based business.

Poor Results Are the Result Of Poor Practice

If Facebook is still relevant today, why are so many companies leaving it behind? After pursuing Facebook marketing plans and seeing poor results, many businesses have started to concentrate their marketing efforts elsewhere. But the problem with many of these failed campaigns was not the medium, but the message. In other words, it wasn't Facebook's fault that the marketing efforts failed. Some marketers are quick to blame the tools when really it was poor practice that produced poor results. Facebook is still relevant, but only if you use it properly. That means: don't leave your page unattended for too long, don't let your page attract too many negative or spam comments, and don't overwhelm people with 100 posts per day. A well-executed Facebook marketing plan can still yield results, as long as you go about it professionally and invest the proper time and resources.

The Facebook versus Twitter Debate

Let's take a moment to look at Facebook pages compared to the other rising social media giant: Twitter. The micro-blogging site is certainly becoming popular these days, but its marketing effect is limited. Studies have found that the average user will spend up to five times longer on Facebook per day than they do on Twitter. That means that the average Facebook user has more time to come across your page every day, and more time to interact with your content. In addition, Facebook is a much better branding tool than Twitter. While Twitter is great for keeping users updated and sharing interesting content, Facebook allows you to create a well-branded page that really tells users who you are and what your business is all about.

The Continuing Dominance Of Facebook

Despite cries to the contrary, Facebook still reigns supreme in the social media world. In terms of overall reach, a 2012 study found that a full 54 percent of users access Facebook regularly, compared to only 10 percent for Twitter, 13 percent for LinkedIn, and 8 percent for Google+. And, even if Facebook use has declined since then, its competitors still have a long way to go if they want to catch up. If you're running your business from a virtual office, you have another great reason to use Facebook pages as part of your marketing plan. With a "virtual" location, you need to leverage every method possible of connecting with people. So, don't be scared away by the bad press - Facebook is still relevant, and it doesn't look like it's going away any time soon.