Written by: Andrea Miller
http://www.sproutcontent.com/blog/facebook-versus-blogging-for-your-business
Blogging is the Backbone
A well-written blog should be the backbone of your business's online
presence. It's the part of your website where you publish well-planned,
thoughtful posts on topics that interest your audience. A blog draws
traffic to your website where potential customers can learn about your
products and services. It's a place to answer questions and provide
relevant information that can help establish you as a thought leader in
your industry.
A blog is a direct communication channel with your customers and the
foundation of any good content marketing strategy. Still need
convincing? We've got 19 Reasons Why Your Business Should Be Writing a Blog.
Now that you are convinced that your business will benefit from
blogging, the question remains: Do you still need to spend time and
effort on a Facebook page? The answer is, it depends on your business...
and how much money you want to spend.
Facebook Feed Crowding
Facebook definitely has its advantages. It's free to start a company
page, and it's the most popular social media platform out there. As of
this summer, there were 1.35 billion monthly active users and those users are becoming more liberal with their "likes." The head of Facebook's News Feed says the total number of Pages liked by the typical Facebook user grew more than 50% last year.
But as people like more pages, the organic reach of each page
decreases. There simply isn't enough space for everyone to see
everything. The more popular Facebook becomes, the less likely your
audience is to see your posts.
A study from News Feed optimization service EdgeRank Checker of 50,000 posts by 1,000 Pages shows organic reach per fan (median) has steadily declined.
Some businesses are combating this decrease in post views with paid
advertising to boost their Facebook posts. It seems to be the only way
to have your brand's posts be seen is "pay to play". That's not sitting
well with business owners who have invested years in building up a
following and who now complain that Facebook wants them to pay for what
they used to get for free.
The popular website Copyblogger made headlines last month when it announced it was shutting down its Facebook page.
As a respected educator on blogging and content marketing with 38,000
Facebook fans, the move was met with a good deal of controversy.
Copyblogger attributed the move to the number of junk fans the page
had accumluated despite never buying likes and the bigger success it saw
with fan engagement on Twitter and Google+. So, the company decided to
focus its energy there.
Facebook Isn't for Everyone
Copyblogger is not alone. More businesses are realizing their target
markets may not be active on Facebook (for business purposes or at all).
Back in 2012, HubSpot reported that 77% of B2C companies acquired
customers from Facebook, but only 43% of B2B companies could do the
same. Instead, B2B companies are seeing higher success rates with
LinkedIn and Twitter. In fact, LinkedIn is now responsible for driving 80% of all B2B social media leads.
Depending on the type of business you do, Facebook might not be right
for you. Not every social media outlet is an ideal fit for every brand.
The goal should be to find where your communities are active and engage
with them there.
Social Media + Blogging
Once you determine the proper channels for your business, tie your
social media content to your business blog. Share links to each blog.
Take tips or quotes from your blog and create graphics to repurpose the
content in a different format. Try recording a video intro to your blog.
Establish your blog as your content hub and then distribute it through
the social media outlets that make sense for your business.
Need help getting started or improving your business blog? Our team specializes in creating content for B2B companies in unglamous industries.
” —Hani Sidow, 
