Facebook for the Fun of It? The Advantage of the Random Fan Page

Lately, when I log on to Facebook I noticed many of my friends have joined unusual fan pages. One “Lost” fan, rabidly upset at the notion of an episode’s pre-emption, joined a page called Obama better not schedule his State of the Union Address the night of LOST! Others have aligned themselves with equally absurd names concerning everything from wanting to tell people to pull up their pants or keep their kids from crying in the movie theater. Seems lately not only will people arbitrarily create Facebook pages for an assortment of behavioral quirks, but people are joining them. It begs the question of whether or not setting up such a page for fun can also benefit your business and website.

The most important thing to know about setting up a Facebook page for a business, celebrity, or other organization is that the URL of said page must be linked from the subject’s official website. Say, for example, you wanted to create a page for your favorite rock band. Unless your page is linked from the band’s official site, Facebook will not recognize your effort as valid and may penalize you by revoking your right to post to the page. It may not be shut down entirely, but you will certainly be hindered in growing its content and popularity.

Now, let’s say you have a tribute site for the band, one rich in content with a following among listeners. Creating a page for fans of your website may be a better way to go. You can still provide content on the band, and direct Facebook users to your tribute site.

So how can this tactic work to build your brand? Think about your business – what do you do, what do you sell? Are you known for carrying a particular brand name or product? You may want to supplement your Facebook presence with pages for “fans” of particular items you offer. A car dealer in Atlanta who specializes in foreign makes like Porsche and Ferrari could set up pages for both, place more emphasis on the region rather than the car. Set up pages on your main site to link to your profiles, then build content with photos and information. From there, you may be able to attract the attention of Facebook users in your area who wish to buy either car.

Just a word of caution: don’t get too involved creating random Facebook pages that you lose focus of your marketing campaigns in general. Be careful not to dilute your overall message, which you want targeted to your audience.

Kathryn Lively is a social media specialist assisting clients with social media optimization and travel social media services.