Tips For Engaging People At Your FaceBook Page

Let's face it, I'm no Ivory Soap fan. But I am a fan of how Procter & Gamble is uses everything from movie stars to dinner ideas to create FaceBook engagement around their Ivory Soap brand.

(I love that the model here is not a size 2. But that's just me ...)

If you could use some ideas to freshen up your FaceBook Page, here are some ideas inspired by The Soap Dish.

1. Leverage Day-Inspired Updates

Simple Sunday invites fans to share something they do to simplify their lives on the weekends. Here's an example of Simple Sunday.

Fun Fact Friday gives people a chance to share a fun fact about something Ivory soap related. Here's an example of Fun Fact Friday. While your fans may not know "fun facts" about your products, you can certainly share some with them in your newsletter, Twitter, etc., and then ask them to share some of your fun facts for a chance to win a prize.

2. Include Celebrity

Emmy award-winner Melissa McCarthy is the brand spokesperson and host of the Soap Dish. It's not clear what her responsibilities are because I don't see a recent status update authored by her, but I do see that the host of the page (a mom blogger -- see below) mentions the actress a lot.

Of course you can't go around using celebrity names without their permission, but you can create a theme at your page, and include celebrities. For example, if you're a silent movie fan, incorporate fun, informative posts about classic silent movie stars. Are you vegan? Incorporate posts about famous vegans and the work they do to spread the word about their lifestyle.

Celebrities usually attract people, so even if you don't buy Us Weekly and People Magazine, you can bet that chatting it up lightly (or heavily, depending on your brand) about what a few famous people are doing will create engagement at your page.

3. Be Personal

This is where you can really shine as an Indie. While P&G had to engage a mom blogger (I'm assuming she's paid) to monitor and engage at their community, you don't need a third party. You can be your brand and create positive impressions of your company for your fans every day.

Peruse the page and you'll see that mom blogger host, Alicia Kirby, initiates many conversations. You can visit Alicia's website here, where you'll see a lovely Ivory ad on the right sidebar. Surprise!

(Note - the graphic at the site displays the Ivory brand. It does not mention FaceBook, yet that's where it links people to. Interesting ...)

The December 2011 issue of Happi Magazine quotes P&G as describing their community as a "light-hearted social community offering women an outlet to share in the everyday humor and honesty of their lives ..."

There Is No "One Way"

As you all know, nothing works for everyone. Every business is different and you must make sure you know your brand, know your customers, and share content that is relevant and appropriate for both.

Hopefully, this provides you with some inspiration and ideas to have fun engaging people around your brand.

Question: What do you think?