With Friends Like These

photo credit: daniel_iversen via photopin cc

Today's business world is tough and awfully competitive. So when it comes to Facebook we have a perfect opportunity to spy on our rival businesses and to flat out steal their posts. We can use their posts against them, see how they are running their social media campaigns and find out what they are up to! This is prefect! It's just like finding the other team's play book the night before the big game.

There is even a great way to protect yourself from others seeing what you're up to on Facebook. As Buzz Bishop of cyberbuzz points out, if you create a fake page you can follow all your competitors without them seeing that you are following them.

And I guess in some ways I can see the point. Because of Facebook's referral ads, there is a chance that suddenly there will be a post on someone's wall saying that your page Likes your competition's page. Facebook has basically advertised your competition directly to your fans.

And that is just horrible!

Except that it really isn't.

photo credit: owenwbrown via photopin cc

I know what I am about to say is counter intuitive and very likely will be ignored by many people, but before you immediately scream about how big an idiot I am just hear me out.

My suggestion is to Like the other page. Not to steal or to spy, but to participate in social interactions. Comment on their posts, share and interact with their page. Show that you have similar views and ideas. Build the relationship. Invite them to like your page as well. Begin conversations. Engage. Share those posts that you like of theirs. Give them a reason to interact with your page.

How is this going to effect you? Well the easiest effect is simply this - you will have a chance to draw in new fans. And essentially you have the PERFECT place to draw those fans because if this is a direct competitor then their fans are already going to have an interest in your page as well.

Of course don't expect to STEAL those fans. They already made their choice and it wasn't originally your page, but they may absolutely like your page as well. Which is just as good.

The less obvious effect is actually more important. Businesses have the need to post and to interact of social media. Simple fans of a page don't. They might, but they might just as simply be lurkers. But the other business isn't going to be a lurker. And more importantly they can't really ignore a comment from your business.

If you comment intelligently on one of their posts they will respond. By opening the dialog you will give more people a reason to join in on the conversation. A post with one comment is usually more likely to have more comments because it shows that it is active.

Finally you can create good will. Businesses don't have to be enemies. In fact competition will make your business better because it will make you strive to be the best. Because you are paying attention to your business you will be able to comment when good things happen or when they do something great. A 'congratulations' or a 'good luck' at the right time will go a long way to making your competitors appreciate you a little more and will also let your competition's fans know that you're a good group as well.

Now I am not saying that every company should like their competitors. In some cases you really won't want to. Coca Cola will never like Pepsi. But on a local level, such a Buzz's use of radio, there is a very limited audience and by interacting with other businesses will allow you to come into contact with a larger number of people.

I know - this is completely against standard marketing and business principles. But social media isn't really a standard marketing tool. Actually, let me correct that. Social media isn't A TRADITIONAL marketing tool. The number of likes doesn't equate to your success or lack of success. More likes than your competitors certainly doesn't mean that your business is better or more successful. Likes is not a way to keep score other than knowing that you can directly communicate to a specific number of people.

It's too easy to assume that someone who likes you is a customer. The fact is that the number of likes means nothing if you don't have an interaction with this people.

Social media isn't traditional marketing and to treat it as such really defeats the purpose. If your reason for following a competing business is to steal that business' posts, you are working against the current of social media (you are also being a lazy marketer but that is none of my business).