Marketing Breadcrumb: Drive Lead Generation With Facebook FBML.

The title of this post alone doesn’t really mean much to the average person, but it will after you read this post.  There are so many different marketing strategies and companies selling marketing strategies, tactics and any other buzzword(s)… it’s ridiculous.  Many of the companies are selling you and others one thing and one thing only: PURE HYPE.  The excitement of being apart of the latest trend and fad when it comes to marketing your products, services, or company brand.  And at the end of it all, they have no metrics or revenues to show.  Just a whole bunch of irrelevant comments and actions… that’s all.  Oh and by the way, you will have paid this company a pretty penny to find this out.  Yet another marketing project and marketing dollars burned without a return.  So why Facebook?  Well, I just completed reading “Facebook Marketing: Leverage Social Media to Grow Your Businsess” by Steven Holzner.  It is definitely a recommended read for business owners and managers looking to utilize Facebook as a lead generation or viable marketing channel within their marketing organization.  There are many arguments to consider in regards to defining metrics to measure, measuring those metrics, and placing a tangible dollar value on such metrics.  I would discuss those, but suggest you buy the book to get the indepth look at the pros and cons of each argument.

But in terms of managing and operating and great lead generation system with Facebook, the static FMBL language can allow for a company to turn a simple form into a simple lead generation tool.  What does this mean?  In simple terms, this means that Facebook has provided developers with a programming language that is equivalent to  HTML, hence the ‘FBML‘.  So, how can your business use FBML to drive lead generation or to increase traffic to your website?

For example, let’s say your business depends heavily on individuals visiting your website and registering as a user to download various whitepapers, presentations, or even buy products/services.  If people don’t visit your site to make purchases, 9 times out of 10 your business will not grow.  Enters FBML.  We’ll take FBML and your user registration on your website and now place it on your Facebook Fan or Profile Page as a tab (See example via the boxes tab: 2010 Hurricane Season).  Simply put, FBML allows for businesses to brand their Facebook page with custom tabs.  These custom tabs can include custom images, forms, text… the works!  So yes, you can run a contest from the custom tab, email newsletter sign up, watch a quick video, or promote user registration.  Think of the leads you’re missing because you’re Facebook Page is unable to capture those persons or businesses that may not visit your site but will visit your Facebook page.  Are you ready to get started?

To learn more about how to use FBML to drive lead generation, or to share your experience, please leave a comment below.