Facebook Explosion...

So, a couple weeks ago I posted photos to my Facebook page and I was averaging 36 people reached and 1 person talking about my page. I looked at it again today and 625 people have been reached and it also says 81 people are talking about my page. Could this be a Facebook glitch or did I all of a sudden get that many people looking at my Facebook page?

depends on what people liked your post. if a few with a ton of friends did it its not uncommon.

... and I've heard others say that Facebook isn't a good marketing tool

Well it's a nice place to look at photos of your wedding. I don't use it to sell my business. I use it as a proofing tool sort of.

Mine fluctuates all the time. I think it can be a great marketing tool to drive business to your site. Most of my business has been through facebook but I hope I can transfer that to my site soon!

drvnbysound wrote in post #16000393
... and I've heard others say that Facebook isn't a good marketing tool

Well, that depends. If it generates real sales with a decent revenue stream then it is a good marketting too for a particular photographer. If it just acts like a fan page where people look and "like" but never eventually buy anything then it is not helping the business's bottom line.

Some make it work for them, some are unsuccessful; I don't know what the magic formula is.

I feel like a facebook page is a must in today's world. Even if it doesn't generate high sales volume. If I look at another professional and they don't have an active page I automatically feel biased against them. Maybe I shouldn't but I do. What do you guys think?

yisrael wrote in post #16026890
I feel like a facebook page is a must in today's world. Even if it doesn't generate high sales volume. If I look at another professional and they don't have an active page I automatically feel biased against them. Maybe I shouldn't but I do. What do you guys think?

I'm curious - why do you feel biased against a pro who doesn't have one?

I have one myself but I also work most of the day and don't have a lot of time to update FB. People today have a variety of online presences but you have to draw the line between doing actual work and simply posting all the time. Time demands are just too tight. Some people make it work quite well though and my hat's off to their successes.

I will also add that FB is a great way to provide valuable customer feedback to a company, both good and bad.

sapearl wrote in post #16026935
I'm curious - why do you feel biased against a pro who doesn't have one?

I have one myself but I also work most of the day and don't have a lot of time to update FB. People today have a variety of online presences but you have to draw the line between doing actual work and simply posting all the time. Time demands are just too tight. Some people make it work quite well though and my hat's off to their successes.

I will also add that FB is a great way to provide valuable customer feedback to a company, both good and bad.

I have no idea why I feel that way. Not saying that it's right to feel that way but I still do. Kinda like I feel like having a website is a must for the average business. Are there professional, successful businesses that don't have either? Of course there are.
Maybe that goes into the providing valuable feedback category more than anything. If you see a page that has great positive comments and a lot of interaction then you know that that business/person must be doing something right? That's just speculation btw.

As far as marketing potential, It's free (other than the large amounts of time required). Almost everyone has a facebook profile that they check regularly. Free analytics. And its a very photo/video friendly platform.

With that said, I have a hard time keeping mine updated regularly which I feel is hurting my business, that's something I'm trying to start focusing more on. I got 100 likes the first day I had the page, I have fought and fought for the other 80 for the past 8 months. I haven't figured out a good balance yet :/

I'm not there yet, but to me I wouldn't care about my FB page driving people to my website necessarily. I like the idea that clients/friends/family can share my work for at no cost to me.

While they are nice, It's not about immediate inquiries and/or bookings for me... I'd like the brand recognition. Say you shoot seniors and/or weddings. If you can post one or a few pictures from each shoot, or the best ones from a day or weekend that client(s) will share with all of their friends. How many people see those images, and also see your brand/watermark? Maybe they aren't looking for a session right away, but if they remember me 6 or 12 months from now, when they are ready... that's still good enough for me. It really only takes a few minutes for me to upload a few pictures from a session, so as long as it's generating interest and it's getting shared... at no cost... I'm good with it.

CameraMan wrote in post #16000207
So, a couple weeks ago I posted photos to my Facebook page and I was averaging 36 people reached and 1 person talking about my page. I looked at it again today and 625 people have been reached and it also says 81 people are talking about my page. Could this be a Facebook glitch or did I all of a sudden get that many people looking at my Facebook page?

Only takes one person to "like" it for it to be seen by potentially hundreds others which increases the chances of at least one of those hundreds to like it to and so on and so forth.

I try to upload some of the best ones from a shoot when I give the photos to the client or soon after. I had a recent client use her iphone to take a picture of her computer screen proofing gallery and use it as her profile picture I uploaded the photos from that shoot later that day and tagged her in it. The crappy image that she took got a ton of likes and comments, the ones that looked great that I uploaded got 2. You live and learn I guess. haha

I'm not on Facebook. So I don't share your perception. I suppose if I were a professional, I would exploit every possibility to generate revenue. But Facebook itself is struggling to find ways to become profitable. Some big corporations have pulled back on social networking advertising because it was not profitable. I was told by someone who was extolling the business benefits of social networking that you have to be on it 24/7 in order to maintain your presence. Who has the time to do that besides junior high school kiddies, stalkers, and narcissists?

drvnbysound wrote in post #16000393
... and I've heard others say that Facebook isn't a good marketing tool

It can be very bad if you market it the wrong way however FB, twitter all these social networking sites are a must these days for advertising and marketing, there now an integral part of our culture/day to day weather you like it or not.

a prime example is this company, ''Zagora'' a small gym/excerise company which started at a home within 2years (now) it is a million dollar line, all spawned from facebook and social networking they have had and done NO advertising as of yet except the social networking sites.

it works, just need to get good advice and know how to market yourself, whoever you are and whatever business you are these days social networking is an extreamly powerful tool.

joedlh wrote in post #16030135
Who has the time to do that besides junior high school kiddies, stalkers, and narcissists?

a dedicated marketing employee, granted small businesses wont usually have access to this, the example i provided above was started at a home (as i said) and at the time a housewife.