Marketing your company’s brand on Facebook may seem like a no brainer at this point. Social media is currently in the fore front of every brand’s marketing strategy. It was even found that 50 percent of people say they trust a company’s Facebook page more than its website.

But getting your company and brand out to your customers in an entertaining and informative way may be tougher than it seems. These are some tips to help you and your brand get through the confusing world of Facebook marketing.

The Good:

• Create exclusive deals for fans of your Facebook page. Who doesn’t love a deal? Giving discounts and sales to one select social media group is a great way to show your customers appreciation of their support of your products and brand. Plus, since there is no limit on the number of followers who can receive the deal, it is more likely that current followers will encourage others to follow your brand.
• Use humor. Be creative with blog posts but try not to be insulting. If you keep your consumers laughing, they can’t wait to see what is coming next.
• Reply to everything. It may take some time and effort to get back to those who have questions or give feedback of your brand but it is well worth it. Respond to each customer with genuine and personal responses. It shows that you and your company go the extra step to assure satisfied customers which followers are sure to notice.
• Frequently post images. Highlight your brand or your company’s involvement in events with interesting and beautiful pictures. Posted images are more likely to get attention than just a written post. Images also allow for easy sharing and create a unique awareness in your products and brand.
• Be inspirational. Learn to be a teacher to those interested in your product. Create short video tutorials or just post a quick tip to show that customers can look to you for guidance, not just products.
• Host a contest. People love when they have the opportunity to get free things. Excite the customers you do have and try to grow interest by creating contests that give away your products or an insider prize. Do a lot of marketing for your contest or make part of registering to spread the news, since if you were in the running for a prize would you really tell all you friends? Also try to make the registration easy or you could lose many interested parties.

The Bad:

• Begging. While asking for “likes” or comments is known to increase interaction by 26 percent, it is a desperate attempt to pull interest in. The best idea is to create content that deserves the interaction all by itself. It is only appropriate to ask when actually trying to spread a large company message or helping the community.
• Stock pictures. Stock photos are created to look perfect, sometimes a little too perfect. Customers want to see the faces of your brand; whether it is those they actually see at stores when they buy or those who are more behind the scenes. Get personal with your own pictures of your products, store or employees. People then get to see who your brand actually is and not some airbrushed, perfect models.
• Make a joke of the situation. Tragic events are a tough area to deal with but never try to make a joke of them. Take a personal approach and speak from your heart. Customers will appreciate that your brand is respectful and heartfelt.
• Posting too much. Long winded posts every few hours are large signs to customers that you and your company enjoy talking much more than listening. Take the time to figure out what people really want to hear and keep it simple. You may find that less is more in the world of gaining followers and interactions.
• The cheese factor. There are certain photos and topics that can gain massive attention no matter what they are advertising. (For example, cute photos of dogs will always get likes, since who doesn’t love a fluffy puppy?) But if these images or stories don’t identify with your brand, you are taking the risk of losing your true followers. When someone who likes your information finds that your brand has nothing to do with what you post about, what is the point of them continuing to follow you?

Creating a positive Facebook personality may seem like a confusing, rule filled venture, but the best advice is to fully understand your brand and the customers who like it. From there you can work towards reaching out to new customers with a voice unique to your brand.