Guest Article From: Ryan Thogmartin, DISRUPT Media and ConnectingDirectors.com
Most funeral directors who focus on their funeral homes Facebook Page seem to specifically focus on how many “likes” they have. Their number one concern is how to get more likes/fans and more engagement.
It’s a common question asked by funeral directors trying to grow their business with Facebook. The problem is they maybe missing the bigger picture. Sure these thing matter but honestly many of your customers aren’t going to like you and many of your fans already have used your services in the past.
Think about how you use Facebook. You don’t go and “Like” Facebook Pages of random businesses you don’t already use or plan to do business with. We generally “Like” things on Facebook that we would like in the real world.
Your Next Client Family Is Connected to Your Current Client Families
This is the real value of Facebook as it relates to growing your funeral home’s business and acquiring new customers. Facebook isn’t about getting strangers to like you, it’s about getting exposure with the friends of your fans (your past clients). These are the best prospects for you, and you already have a foot in the door because one of their friends, someone who they trust and respect, has already made the choice to use your funeral home.
For example, when you think about buying a new hearse or family car then you seek out a colleague who already has that model or brand for a recommendation. Or if we look outside your business and use the purchase of a new smartphone as the example. If you’ve seen that a friend is often commenting on a cellphone company’s page on Facebook, you are more likely check out that store when it’s time to purchase a smartphone.
Harness The Power Of Social
The fact is that we are friends with people who are like us. This means that our friends and social connections are the best source of new business for the businesses that we interact with.
For example, if there is a restaurant you love, a subset of your friends would also love to check it out. We are friends with people like us, so spreading your message socially can be your best way to build awareness with new customers.
The Real Value of Facebook Is Friends of Fans
The most effective way to get those new customers is through word-of-mouth (social media is the new word-of-mouth).
Many funeral homes want to reach new client families on Facebook, but they just aren’t sure how. The answer is simple: through your existing fans. Turn your existing fans into raging social advocates who share recommendations for your funeral home.
Here are some engagement tactics that you can use to get your current customers to generate awareness for your funeral home with their friends:
- Encourage interactions with content to build awareness
- Run contests or trivia where your fans reveal interesting things about their personality
- Ask customers to post photos on your Facebook
- Feature customers on your Facebook
- Provide incentives for sharing
- Build contests for sharing and social spread, not to maximize entries
- Create an extraordinary visual experience that customers want to share
- Build mass momentum with events
For more information on embracing social media for your funeral home please contact DISRUPT Media.
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