Facebook 'infographic' interesting; but what does it mean?

You should post your Facebook messages at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday (plus on alternating days during the week), talk about sex and avoid using the term "vs," according to research performed by social media maven Dan Zarella (DanZarella.com). These are interesting statistics, but I'm sure Dan would advise us that effective marketing using social media requires you to use this type of research thoughtfully. Further investigation might show that the majority of Facebook viewers who see your 8:00 a.m. (and is this U.S. Eastern Standard Time, by the way?) Saturday post might be a young crowd that lies outside your demographic market. Obviously, common marketing sense needs to prevail. If your market is to tweens, teens and young adults, then you'd be advised to trigger your Facebook posts for the 'top of the weekend.'  But if your market is a little more complex, then what?

ConnectedMarkets guru George Grant says, "Start by defining your audience. Who do you know that talks to that audience? Try to get to know as many people as possible in your audience, especially the movers and shakers who already talk with them. Get movers and shakers to spread your message. That may involve payment of some kind. Reciprocation, favor, cash, drugs, booze, hookers. Whatever works.

"Joke.

"Or - and this is probably the most effective path - craft a message so interesting, they'll find it hard not to spread."

We recommend a common sense approach when it comes to Facebook that we developed after studying another of Zarella's articles on "6 Facebook tips for social media."

The bottom line in our way of thinking is that posting to Facebook is only a small piece of your social media program. Social media is, in its purest essence, an extraction of a well-planned, comprehensive online marketing strategy. Gone are the days when a customer would find you by attending trades shows, reading magazines or journals, requesting that you mail them a brochure (heavens!) or asking their friends and business acquaintances.Today, your customer starts in Google by searching on relevant keywords and reviews each vendor's site. Naturally, those websites with the most interesting and complete information, often enhanced by relevant and engaging videos and blogs, are the ones that prompt a click or a call.

So we advise taking Zarella's information, or infographic, for what it's worth -- as an interesting factoid to consider. Your goal in posting to Facebook, Twitter, your Blog or any other site is to attract readers to your 'storefront,' namely, your website.So if you're posting on a Saturday at 8:00 a.m. New Zealand time or at midnight on Wednesday, hopefully your message will attract the right kind of attention from the right people...your prospective customer.