Facebook for your business

 

Last December, the department launched a Facebook page to begin promoting made-in-Macomb products that would make great gifts in time for the holiday season.  Since then, we have discovered that social media offers us an amazing ability to broadcast bits of information to an interested audience in real time.  Our hope is that our messages are sometimes compelling enough for our followers to share with their friends. 

Christopher Kourtakis of 360* Industry Solutions, a company that specializes in managing social media content for area businesses, spoke recently at the Macomb Chamber’s Business Gardening Summit.  He told us, “The internet is the new “front door” for a business.  In the past, customers would visit your business to learn about what they want or need.  Today, when they enter your physical store, they have most likely already been on the web to learn about the products you offer, learn about your business, and they are sometimes more educated than your sales staff.  You need to make sure that you take the time to provide them with an up to date website, ensure that your business listings on the search engines are correct and that if you have a social media profile you are consistently engaging your customers and providing them with useful and honest information.”  

 At last count, there were 750 million Facebook users.  If Facebook were a country, it would be the third most populated following only China and India.  It would have more than twice the number of people that live in the United States. 

Is your business or organization using social media?  Situated Research, a Chicago-based company that evaluates the complex environment of website and social media marketing for such well-known brands as McDonalds, Forbes and Apple, has blogged about the most compelling reasons for businesses to consider using social media. A few of those reasons include “brand recognition,” “generating site traffic” and “niche marketing.” To see the complete “top ten” list, click here.

For us, Facebook has provided an opportunity to share information about businesses, events and other bits of information of local interest. In some small way, we hope that our communication helps to reinforce the message that Macomb County is truly a wonderful place to make a life and build a business.      

For instance, the shop local campaign we launched last year helped to create awareness about the many products that are made right here.  While we appreciate that mega-marts and department stores create jobs, increase tax revenues and are philanthropically generous to our organizations, we want to focus on the unique boutique shopping experiences that are available in Macomb County.

We’ll be assembling a list of our favorites and featuring one each day during December.

Intrigued?  Check out our Facebook page and follow the fun*.  In the meantime, if you frequent a boutique shop that you think we ought to feature, please drop us a note:  eMacomb@macombcountymi.gov

*By the way, you don’t have to have a Facebook account to visit our page.  See what’s new at https://www.facebook.com/MacombCountyPlanningAndEconomicDevelopment
See you in cyberspace!