Facebook Like vs a Qualified Email Address?

If you had to pick one, what would it be? A Facebook “like” or an email address?  When building a community and connecting with your audience, would you rather have 1000 fans on your Facebook page or 1000 qualified names?

We believe in the importance of integrating social media into your business to obtain a positive return on investment. Social media is not a Band-aid for a broken business, nor should it be managed as a stand-alone silo of Facebook likes.

Some will argue that nobody uses email anymore. Only the future will tell. However…

Maybe the truth is that we’re comparing apples to oranges. The two are obvious not the same. They each bring different benefits. The key is to build authentic social relationships that inspire your audiences to action.  Yes, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and the hundreds of other social platforms can all help do this.

However, for the purpose of this post let’s discuss the preference of marketers to leverage email versus a Facebook “like” to foster relationships with a goal of a sale of a product or service.

1. “Likes” are good but the real value comes in your ability to inspire them to action past the “like”.Just because someone “likes” your page doesn’t mean they have ever looked at anything you’ve posted since the first day they clicked “like”.  The majority of Facebook “likers” will never visit the page they liked again. It’s up to you to inspire your Facebook fans to further engage and join your community.

2. eMail is not dead yet. It reminds us of the Monty Python Holy Grail movie in the scene where they are all bringing out their dead. I remember the one man yelling, “but I’m not dead yet”.  Another responds with “he will be by morning.”  Yes, email could eventually morph into something else. However, for most businesses it’s not dead yet.

3. Target market still uses email. The data proves it. They open, they read, they click thru and they pick up the phone to inquire about our services. They take action which equals a positive return on investment for our business.

4. It is more intimate. It helps us nurture client/fan relationships. We know who’s opening what content. We know what they like, what they don’t like. We are then able to better serve them up entertaining content on the Facebook page, Twitter feeds and LinkedIn conversations.

5. eMail builds trust and thought leadership. Obviously the email subscriber has more skin in the game than a simple “liker”.  From first click of the “subscribe” button they are making a silent statement of trust. It’s up to me what I do with that trust.

6. We can easily get my email subscribers to my Facebook page. Not always so easy to get a Facebook “liker’s” email address.

7. It works. Bottom line, every time we launch an  email  campaign to a target audience, we can produce analytics that show results; increased sales.  We are seeing good results with integrating email to our marketing and social media efforts.We can’t imagine a business or brand without our automated email nurturing system integrated into the DNA of  their audience communications.

As with any marketing medium, platform or tool, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. The key to success in business, online marketing and social media is to develop an integrated plan, platform and execution strategy that supports your business goals and objectives. Choosing only a Facebook like may wind you up with a lot of people who like you a lot but never buy from you.