Skip Facebook?

I used to tell small business owners that Facebook was a cost effective way to connect with their customers. I have to say, that it has never been free. Your time is precious and costs money.

Now, after so many businesses logged on, bought in, took the time to integrate Facebook into their businesses and marketing plans, what does Facebook do? Hold their fans hostage.

How is this one social network doing this? Well when you insert a status update on a brand (business) page, you have to pay to reach your whole audience. It has been this way for a while, I know. So what is a small business to do?

Ask yourself these 5 questions:

1. Who are my customers and how do they interact/purchase with my business?
2. Where are my customers? Are they online only? Or are they coming into your brick-and-mortar location(s)?
3. What messages resonate with your customers and are those messages best delivered on Facebook, or would another medium be better?
4. How are you able to measure you marketing initiatives now?
5. Are your marketing goals aligned with business goals?

#5 is probably a better place to start if you really want to see if it is worth the investment to put money toward Facebook posts. In my mind, funding for marketing is always worth the investment if… IF you are measuring the return and if your initiatives are based on business goals.

I have read blog posts about companies leaving Facebook. If you have built an audience by putting in the time and money already, that can be a painful business decision. There are also people that might be married to Facebook, which makes the decision a much harder one.

What are your thoughts? Are you leaving Facebook?