Instant Reply on Facebook. Let the Visitors to your Facebook Business Page Know What to Expect Regarding Your Typical Response Time to Facebook Page Messages

Here's a handy little piece of info to show your Facebook audience that you care.

Edit the settings for your response time to your page and even consider adding an instant reply message. 

Remember, these are messages to your page, not posts or comments.

Here's a few examples of why and what you should think about.

1. An auto-response will show people that you care and that their message didn't just roll out into the digital universe.

2. Some of my smaller businesses don't get tons of messages at the beginning and so they don't think to check for them. The instant reply feature can tell people how to reach you more quickly if they need to.

3. What if you go on vacation? This feature, again, helps people to know that the message was sent and could give alternatives to contact you.

4. What if the nature of your world is that you just can't answer right away. Very small businesses can't answer when they are on a job or project. Instant reply will tell people this and set expectations.

How do you set up your instant reply and indicate your typical response time for messages? 

On your page, click settings on the right side.
Then click on "messaging". It will bring you to the screen below.

Should I Make Facebook Business Page or a Facebook Profile Page? Why should I even have a business page?

Making a Facebook business page has become the norm. Its getting to the point where it adds credibility to a business. For large national businesses it can be a revenue driver but what about for small to medium sized local businesses?

Well it still matters. Here's why:

1. It does add credibility to your business. In today's world, people turn to online reviews to make decisions about whom they will do business with. Having a page with a few hundred followers makes you seem more legit. Ironically, you don't really have to have reviews on the page, you just have to have the page and have followers.

2. It allows you to keep some top of mind awareness with your clients. Facebook has, how-ever, made it hard for you to show up in your follower's feeds if they don't interact with you. Unless of course you pay to boost your feeds. I prefer to help my clients make their content interactive enough that boosting doesn't have to be a thing. 

3. Facebook is climbing the ranks as a "search engine". I put that in quotes because they are not as big for search as some may think, but it's still something to be mindful of. While Facebook tries to capture this space, it's good to get your page started and get some action going. Even if this is a growing time for you.

4. Taking the time to build a page early on gives you a history and time to grow in anticipation of the time when you will really need the page. Grow now while you can.

5. There are things you can do to take advantage of and convert even a few followers without spending tons of, or even any, money.

Should I have a Facebook page or a Facebook business page?

Definitely a business page.

1. Regular profile pages (like we have as people) only allow for up to 5,000 "friends". Some day you may care about that.

2. Business pages allow for more marketing options that you may choose to take in the future. 

3. Business pages come with "Insights" which are page metrics that you can also take advantage of in the future. 

4. People can "check in" to a business page.

5. You can schedule posts ahead of time. (we'll cover that later)

6. You can't change your profile page into a business page later. You can only tell people that you're doing it and hope they follow. 

7. You can add admins to your business page if you ever have someone who will be helping you maintain it. On a profile page you would have to give them your log in. Ack!

8. Really... just make a business page.

I am concerned about comments on my site. I am concerned because I work in a very sensitive industry (like financial or medical) and need to protect my brand image. 
This is a true concern and it's also manageable. With my sensitive clients, I recommend turning the ability for others to post on their page off. These settings can be changed later as you get to know your "fans" better and get more comfortable. At this time, you can not prevent people from commenting on your posts (this feature seems to come and go) but you can adjust your content so that it is "public friendly" and you can delete or hide comments after they are made. (click on the soft grey x that appears as you hover over the offending comment)

To turn off the ability for others to post on your page (as per Facebook):

If you allow visitors to publish posts to your Page, their posts can appear in Visitor Posts on the left side of your Page. If you allow photo and video posts, these posts can also appear in your Page's Photos and Videos sections.

To allow or disable posts by other people on your Page, you'll need to be an admin. If you're an admin:

Click Settings at the top of your Page. 

Click Visitor Posts. 

Click to choose Allow visitors to the Page to publish posts or Disable posts by other people on the Page. If you allow visitors to publish posts, you can choose to: Allow photo and video posts or Review posts by other people before they are published to the Page. 

Click Save Changes.

My customers aren't online (ugh, really, still?)
Your customers may not all be online but there are sooooo many of them that are that you aren't aware of OR there are many new customers that ARE online OR there are advisers (family and friends) to your customers online. I have had several financial and medical clients who thought this and it turns out not to be true. There are benefits from being online where so many people are. EVEN if I were wrong, it's free and requires only some time so let's at least try.
Forbes has a FB page.
Senior Living has FB page.
MENSA has a FB page.

Too old, too rich and too anything is no longer is a thing. Let's not be left behind.


I am small business working from a home or location that i don't want put online. What do I do? 
or
I don't want the review section showing on my page right now. What do I do?

Read our post on blocking your address and setting it up so that reviews and or maps don't show on your page.

So go ahead and set up a business page on Facebook and we'll discuss what content you should post in our next blog.

Why Doesn't the Actual Number of People who Saw our Boosted Facebook Post Match the Original Estimate?

Facebook boosted posts definitely have a place in business depending on what your goal is.
Are you trying to increase the number of likes on your Facebook page? These posts can help. Trying to get visits to your website? Facebook can help. Trying to sell a product? Facebook MAY be able to help depending on how you handle it.

We will discuss how and when to use Facebook post boosting in another article.

Today we are addressing my number one client question of the week. Why doesn't the actual number of people who saw our boosted Facebook Boosted Post match the original estimate Facebook gave me when I created the boost?

Well, this number almost never matches exactly. You should not boost posts if the exact number is necessary. The fact is that when you are engaging in the boosting of a Facebook post, they are giving you a rough estimate of what you could achieve if all the stars are lined up correctly. What you will actually pay to reach each person is very similar to Ebay, the stock market or Google PPC campaigns. Extraneous consumption can drive up your numbers.

So if you put an antique shoe tree for sale on Ebay, you can see what other antique shoes trees have sold for, but it's not a guarantee of pricing. Maybe no one needs your antique shoe tree this month. The amount you get could be low. Maybe everyone suddenly needs antique shoe trees. You could sell it for many times the average. The same happens for Facebook boosted posts. If multiple businesses are bidding to reach the same audience, the price per person reached can go up. Fortunately on FB boosted posts we are usually talking a few cents to a dollar or two up. 

What I also tell my clients is, it's ok. You shouldn't be measuring the success of your campaign by people reached. You should measure based on the actions that the people took.

Did you want page likes? Did you get what you expected? How much is each "like" worth to you? This information is more valuable than a number of people seeing your posts.

9 Answers for the FAQ - Why Doesn't My Google Analytics Information Match What My Vendor Is Reporting (Including DFP and Facebook)

I get this question several times per month. Why don't my Google Analytics numbers match my vendor reports, including Facebook and DFP (DoubleClick For Publishers)?

While Google Analytics is wonderful for understanding how visitors use your website, it doesn't track session data the same way that log servers track clicks. Sessions and visits and clicks are not measured in the same way because although in our minds and for basic reporting they are the same thing, in the techy underbelly of website traffic, they are not the same thing and are not measured in the same way.

If you don't want to get too geaky, you can stop here and know that it's ok. Industry standards show that a minimum 10-15% margin of difference is normal. It can be more if any of the issues in the super geaky section below apply to you. I have also heard many say it's up to 40% on Facebook reporting.

When you use a vendor that is trusted and that has years of experience with successful campaigns, you can rest assured that you are not being scammed. The top vendors work each day in the industry and with the IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau) to maintain integrity among those offering digital marketing. It's not all a ploy to trick you. The reporting is just different - doesn't mean it's wrong. 

If you want to get mildly geaky, here is the basic reason:

1. Click data is based on ad server logs from the ad exchange(s).  Analytics data (such as Google Analytics) that measures sessions, etc, is based on cookies or page loads. Two different measurement sources. In order for Google to record a "session", the following needs to occur:

A. A click from an ad takes place and the browser is pointed to the advertiser’s landing page.
B. When the browser starts to download the landing page, there may be a request for several files at the same time, including JavaScript, CSS, images, video, audio, etc., including the Google Analytics tracking code.
C. The Google Analytics JavaScript file must first be downloaded and interpreted by the user’s browser.
D. The user’s browser/device and security settings must support:
• Cookies
• JavaScript
• Images
E. If any of the above are disabled, Google Analytics may not be able to record a session.
F. Next, the browser sends a separate request to www.google-analytics.com, the Google Analytics servers.
G. Finally, a session is recorded.

This alone is a big chunk of why sessions and clicks don't match in reporting. Your vendor gets and receives a click and they count it, it's that simple. But steps A-G above have to happen before Google Analytics records a session. 

Ad servers track clicks, while Google Analytics tracks sessions. (info obtained from Google Support.)

*****You could use a UTM code to help mitigate some differences as long as you remember it will still never match exactly. Click here for UTM code info.

And if you'd like to get super geaky, the following is information directly from Google Support and Vicimediainc.com. 

2. YOUR LANDING PAGE MIGHT REDIRECT TO A DIFFERENT PAGE

Redirects in landing pages can often keep the Google Analytics code from launching and properly identifying the traffic.

3. USERS MIGHT HAVE SET THEIR BROWSER PREFERENCES IN WAYS THAT PREVENT GOOGLE ANALYTICS USED ON WEBSITES FROM COLLECTING DATA

Users entering your website through a click might have JavaScript or images turned off, or might use other technologies preventing Google Analytics from reporting about your website users (such as by installing the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on).

There is also more information from Vicimediainc.com here:

4. If a user comes to your site from an ad, and then leaves the landing page before the Google Analytics tracking code executes, then the “gclid parameter” is never passed to the Google servers, and that click is not associated with the session. The result is a clicks vs. sessions discrepancy.

5. If your Google Analytics tracking code is at the bottom of your web page and placed right above the closing of the body section then you are definitely at risk for reporting discrepancies. And, the bigger and heavier the page the more at risk you are. Why is this an issue? Because a person who clicks on your ad and bounces quickly will in all likelihood never trigger the Google Analytics tracking code lying at the bottom of your page code. One simple solution is to place your Google Analytics tracking code near the top of the page to minimize the risk.

6. A VISITOR MAY CLICK YOUR AD MULTIPLE TIMES.

When one person clicks on one advertisement multiple times in the same session, the ad server records multiple clicks while Google Analytics recognizes the separate pageviews as one visit. This is a common behavior among visitors engaging in comparison shopping.

7. 3RD PARTY IMAGES

Some browsers give users the option to disable images that are requested from domains other than the current page. Disabling such images will prevent data from being sent to Google Analytics.

8. 1ST PARTY VS. 3RD PARTY COOKIES

Even among cookie-based tracking solutions, there is a difference between 1st party and 3rd party cookies. Because 3rd party cookies are set by a source other than the website being visited, they’re often blocked by browsers and security software. Google Analytics uses 1st party cookies.

9. YOU DON'T HAVE YOUR GOOGLE ANALYTICS TRACKING CODE ON YOUR LANDING PAGE

This might sound like a no-brainer, but it happens too often that a landing page doesn’t contain the Google Analytics tracking code. If this happens, a click is measured, but no visit at all.

And here are some facts supplied by Facebook Support:
Facebook conversion measurement attributes conversions based on a 24-hour view and 28-day click through window. Any comparison you do against other tracking data must be within the same attribution model. 
Many 3rd party tracking providers use referrer URLs to credit conversions back to ads. Due to this method, these providers generally under-report Facebook conversions by about 40%. This is due to the fact that roughly 40% of Facebook users browse Facebook using HTTPS instead of HTTP. So when a user clicks on an ad on Facebook and converts on a site, the referrer cannot be recorded since the user left an HTTPS environment and entered an HTTP environment.

So in review:

• A session is not measured the same way a click is measured.
• You could be missing tracking codes (maybe).
• The visitor may have disable some tracking metrics on their browser.
• A shopper may click more than once if they are actively looking.
• Your landing page may use a redirect.
• Your tracking code could be too low on a heavy page. 
• HTTP vs HTTPS in one visit

Removing the Facebook Review Section from your Business Facebook Page

An interesting question was asked of me this week. "How can my client remove their review section from their Facebook Page?"
I don't typically recommend taking the review section out. I am a staunch advocate of handling reviews correctly so they are not only not a problem anymore, but so that they help you. That being said, I have clients who aren't at that point yet. Plus I wanted to know how to remove the section just because.

I didn't think it was going to be tricky until we looked into it a bit. 

Turns out you can't just remove the Facebook Reviews Section. 
There are two work arounds that we found.

1. Remove the maps from your page. For some reason, this makes your review section not appear. Transversely, if you want a review section but aren't using your full address or map, you won't get a review section. This is something for people running businesses from their home to consider.

2. Change your page category to a non-business category.

**We would really love to hear from you if you know another method. As of November 2015, this is what we know.

For most clients, we are opting to change the business category over removing the map. We feel maps can be important for future clients and haven't seen any negative things occur with the changed non business category. Here are the two ways to do it.

To remove the map you do the following:

1) Click manage pages under the little drop down arrow in upper right corner.

2) Click on "About" then "Page Info" then "Address".

3) Click “Edit” on the right side of the “Address” line.4) Under the map un-check the box that states “Show this map on your Page and enable check-ins.”.

5) Click “Save changes”.

The Reviews Section should now be removed from your Facebook Page.

To change your catagory:

1) Click manage pages under the little drop down arrow in upper right corner.

2) Click on "About" then "Page Info" then "Category".

3) Click edit next to Category and make your site a non business category. 

In our example here, we have the full address with box checked, but made the category non business and reviews still went away.

No review section even with address and map.

Review section appears because both category and business are completed.

Properly handling reviews is coming in future posts. Please follow us to keep reading more.