5 Corporate Facebook Pages That Are Hitting All the Right Buttons

Sometimes, seeing a corporate Facebook account can elicit nothing but ‘cringe’ from the audience. A comparison can be made here to the parent who adds their children on Facebook, then embarrasses them with their updates about what’s for dinner and their attempts to be ‘hip’. It’s awkward, it’s disingenuous and usually you don’t want to be associated with them.

The problem is that some businesses just aren’t cool. No matter how they dress it up, they are ultimately trying to make money, and that means that anything they post is going to be seen through that lens.

• If they post often, it becomes spam.
• If they don’t post often, it becomes boring.
• If they try to be funny, it often doesn’t come over as sincere.
• If they’re serious then nobody wants to read it.
• Worst case scenario: It comes off as condescending.

But some companies do manage to play their cards right in walking the fine line between irreverence and sincerity. Some have actually managed to bolster their reputation through social media and many have certainly driven huge numbers of sales through their pages. Let’s look at five of the best and see what their secrets are!

Bonobos

Bonobos sells stylish men’s clothes and have been praised on several occasions for their use of social media generally. On Facebook they excel at starting stimulating discussions, posting about men’s lifestyle and answering questions. In other words, they provide value for those following them and actually have a reason for being on Facebook other than just trying to sell their items. This means that if you like Bonobos, you actually get to read something interesting meaning that you might just stay with them.

Lesson: Focus on providing value and you will never go wrong.

Old Spice

Old Spice is another company that knows how to do social media marketing right. Their well-designed adverts went viral not long ago thanks to being genuinely hilarious and they continue this trend with regular laugh-out-loud posts. If people are making compilation videos of your ads, then you know you’re doing something right.

Lesson: Companies can be genuinely funny and Facebook works perfectly well with a smart ad campaign.

Red Bull

Red Bull is a company that does almost everything right when it comes to their Facebook page. Not only do their videos continue to create strong associations between their brand and feats of incredible human daring, but they also feature interactive games for people to play (‘Procrastination Station’) and promote their Facebook page through an online TV program.

Lesson: This is a multi-pronged multimedia assault done right.

LiveScribe

LiveScribe has two features that any business should consider emulating. They have a storefront built into their Facebook page allowing you to buy without leaving Facebook, and they have a built in support desk. They’ve removed the number of steps users need to take to get to their products and provided a direct line for communication. End result? More sales and better engagement with their customers.

Lesson: Make it convenient for your customers to reach your business.

Coca-Cola

Coco-Cola are hugely successful on Twitter and on Facebook. They have innovative ad campaigns as well as a number of interactive competitions and events to encourage their followers to get involved. A recent campaign (Coca-Cola Summer Snapshot Contest) encouraged users to share photos showing themselves enjoying their Coca-Cola in the summer sun. The fans loved getting their pictures voted on, and Coca-Cola got a ton of free promotion and shares. Everyone wins!

Lesson: Learn to get your followers involved.

So there you have it, five corporate Facebook pages that are hitting all the right buttons. Learn from them, and you might find that your users start hitting the right buttons too… especially that ‘like’ button!