Integrating Facebook with Your Websites

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& courtesy of:

"Like" us on Facebook for more tips & tricks : http://www.facebook.com/NewNectar

WHY?

It's important to understand "why" we're using Facebook instead of just getting straight to the shiny new tools.

Why Facebook & What Can It Do for ME?

Facebook is unique among the social networking platforms, let's explore:

Word-of-Mouth Marketing

Word-of-mouth marketing. As businesses, we know & intuitively understand why this type of marketing is so powerful. Billboards & ad campaigns are nice -- but word of mouth is just that -- straight from the horse's mouth! This type of marketing is credible. We trust what our friends & family tell us!

Online social networking platforms (like Facebook,) allow word-of-mouth marketing to spread farther, faster!

So we "get" why Word-of-Mouth Marketing is powerful offline -- online it retains that power, and it gains tremendous reach! We already know that social networks are connected, and that information can spread rapidly from person to person. But on a more micro-level, let's look at one example. Let's say I enjoy sushi that I just tried at a new restaurant....

I wouldn’t do this:

I wouldn't start flipping through my rolodex and calling friends & colleagues just to say that I LOVE this new sushi place. That would be awkward.

But I would do this:

But it isn't awkward or unusual to spread this information like this.

It’s also about: Location, Location, Location!

The second key thing about social media is the access it gives you on a daily basis.

Prime Real Estate on Facebook is the Newsfeed ...

Your brand, your info .... right in the heart of the people & information that matter most.

Notice my newsfeed. I have information about people I care about a great deal. I get updated on their lives.... from the mundane to the miraculous. And right in the middle of it? An update for a business I "like". The newsfeed puts your business -- your brand, your message -- right in the heart of what people care about the most! Now that's POWERFUL!

In order to have access to this prime real estate.... you need to have people “like”

your page....

In order to get in this valuable spot, all you have to do is get people to "like" your page. So, amazing access plus supersized word-of-mouth marketing. Sounds pretty good, right?

We’ve covered why.... so, HOW do we do it?

Now that we understand the value of Facebook -- let's take a look at how we can integrate this powerful platform with our websites.

1. Facebook Page2. Applications3. Widgets4. Open Graph

Here are some core ways. Of course, there are others, and as with anything with Facebook, things are likely to evolve & change. But this is a solid place to start.

The Facebook “Page” is at the Core of a Business’s Facebook Presence

The best place to begin is the Facebook "Page". Pages aren't just for businesses (celebrities, musicians, & politicans use them too,) but they are the most robust tool that Facebook offers for businesses. They are truly the core of a Facebook presence for a business. So, what's so great about a page?

engage

interactaccess

Brand

engage

Pages allow you to engage with your audience. Similar to a personal profile, a page has a window that allows you to type a status & share a photo or link. This is the main information that makes its way to those aforementioned "newsfeeds." Below that, we see the "wall". Here we can interact with people that like our page and see insights (analytics) for each post. Here on the left side, we see our logo -- this is the logo that will appear next to every post. As with any online presence --- consistency in branding is key. We also have other options to customize the page, and we can see the total number of people that "like" our Facebook page.

You can customize your page...

I mentioned you can customize your page. Here you see that we've ported dynamic content from our website (www.newnectar.com) directly to our Facebook tab. This appears under a custom tab called "New Nectar." Facebook allows you to direct first time visitors to a custom tab like this -- and people that are already fans of your page can click over to the tab at any time.

This is (now) done via apps & iframes

The customizing in this case is done via an application. It's also accomplished because now (finally!) Facebook allows for the use of iframes. This is an improvement on FBML, which is being phased out on the site.

iframes = awesome

iframes are awesome because they allow us to display whatever content we want directly on Facebook. So, websites or portions of websites, store fronts, blogs, etc... anything is possible!

Widgets & Badges

Use on websites & blogs.

Just one click to “like” and you have access to another newsfeed!

Communicates you’re on FB & you value interaction & engagement.

Now that we've seen ways you can display your website on Facebook, let's look at some of the ways you can integrate Facebook with your website. The first is the "like box" we see here. This is technically a part of the "open graph" , which we'll discuss in a second, but really, this is just a widget that can be plugged into your site with basic HTML.

The “Open Graph”

the Open Graph.... this is Facebook's attempt at ruling the world... or, at least the internet. The open graph allows you to integrate parts of the Facebook experience with your website. Here we are looking specifically at social plugins which are a part of the open graph. There are many social plugins, and many other things you can accomplish with Facebook's API, but let's look at the core items you would likely use.

The “like” button......

The Like Button. Liking a page or content item will do a couple things: it will show that you or your friends "like" something, and it will then also publish this information on Facebook. This is similar to the "share" button that is likewise being phased out in favor of "like". On a deeper level, it is possible to actually keep track of everyone that "likes" a certain page, or say -- a certain type of product. This would allow you to concentrate future marketing attempts on them. Interesting stuff that is still evolving.

comments....

Comments. In this example, I have commented on a blog on our website. The comment appears on the site (and, commenting like this does NOT require any login or registration on the part of commenter,) and it also appears on Facebook.

recommendations, login & registration

Let's look at two more final pieces of the open graph. Recommendations is newer and pretty neat. It suggests information that I might find interesting on a website.

Login & registration are related. Both allow users to connect with your site without filling in a new profile/ registration. It's easier for them and easy translates into more registrations & interactions.

Integrating Facebook with Your Websites

More info available:

in the white paperonline at www.newnectar.com

on Facebook at www.facebook.com/newnectar on twitter at @smmjenn

There you have it! There are a ton of awesome ways to integrate Facebook with your website. We've just scratched the surface on what is possible. If you want to learn more, or have specific questions, please don't hesitate to visit our site at www.newnectar.com or to email me at any time at jenn@newnectar.com. Of course, since this is all about social media, you can also connect with me on Twitter (@smmjenn) or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/newnectar. Thanks for your time & good luck with all your Facebook endeavors!