Where’d I get 47%?

According to All Facebook Jeff Widman of BrandGlue did some A/B testing. He discovered…

We ran an A/B test just four weeks ago to guesstimate the efficacy of a landing tab. We drove visitors to the fan page of a major brand using ads. Those ad-driven visitors converted to fans at a rate of approximately 47% WITH a landing tab. When we turned off the landing tab, those same ad-driven visitors converted to fans at approximately 23%. A VERY noticeable loss in conversions over the course of the campaign.

That type of conversion coupled with the fact that Facebook continues to push the limits, innovate and grow at a staggering rate (they’re over 550 million now) should convince you to at least explore creating a custom Facebook landing tab for your non-profit organization.

As you explore, start looking at ways to make the tool work for you and check out how others (non-profits and for-profits) are getting creative with the capabilities Facebook gives them.  I’ve been doing just that.

As I was looking for an example to share with you I ran across Ford Motorcars. I really was looking for a great non-profit example – promise – but I had to share this with you because Ford did such a nice job with their Ford Focus Facebook fan page.

Our Use Case: Ford Motorcars

Ford does a great job capturing the attention of first time visitors and/or people who have yet to “like” their page.

Call to Action

As soon as you get to the Ford Focus Facebook landing page you’ll see something similar to the above. Essentially it’s a huge call to action.  Two things are happening here.

First, you’re being directed to a custom tab when you go to their Facebook fan page – Instead of going directly to the wall (the standard Facebook landing page). This way Ford can serve up the content they want you to see. In Fords case there’re putting a big call to action in front of everyone who visits. It’s sort of like asking people to subscribe to your email newsletter, but on Facebook.

Second, you’re seeing a limited portion of the content available on their custom tab. Ford decided to wet your appetite by only showing you what they want you to see, but not making it all available. You’ve got to “like” their page to see the rest.

Incentive

If you head over to the Ford Focus Facebook page you’ll notice a subtle effect – they’ve given you an idea of what type of content you could access, but you can’t actually get to it until you “like” their page.

Showing the benefit of what one would get when they “like” your page is a great idea. And it’s the key to the conversion.

What should I put on my custom Facebook landing tab?

Can you think of a way to do something similar for your non-profit organization? Here are a few nonprofit examples to learn from in case you’re having trouble coming up with an idea.

• http://www.facebook.com/worldwildlifefund
• http://www.facebook.com/actionalz
• http://www.facebook.com/redcross
• http://www.facebook.com/NationalWildlife

As you look over these pages as well as others, make sure to think about what compels people to engage with your non-profit. What makes people want to connect with you? What do you offer that people need?

Identifying these types of things is critical to your success. If the “offer” isn’t compelling or doesn’t meet a need then the chances of getting people to “like” your Facebook page, even with a cool new tab”, is slim.

I want to create a custom Facebook landing tab

If you’re looking to get started right now and you are somewhat familiar with Facebook pages you can follow the simple steps below to create and add a custom Facebook landing tab to your Facebook page. If you’re new to it all check out the resources I’ve given you below. They’ll give you more insight and better step-by-step instructions.

• Add the Facebook Static FBML application (FBML) to your page.
• Then go back on your page and click on the “Edit Page” link under your logo.
• Once you get to the edit page area click on the “Application” link in the left Colum.
• Look for the <FBML> application and click on the “edit” link below the logo.
• Edit the two areas you see “Box Title” and “FBML”. The title is the name your visitors will see on the tab. The FBML is everything that will show up on the tab.
• Once you’ve finished creating your tab make sure to save your changes and head back to your pages main screen.
• In the tab section where you see Info, Wall, etc … click on the plus sign (+), which should be the last tab in the row. You should see the newly created tab in the drop down.
• Click and drag your new tab so that it’s next to the “Info” tab. This way it will be visible to everyone on the screen.
• Lastly, make your new custom tab the landing page people see when they visit your Facebook page by going to “Manage Permissions” (you get there by clicking “Edit Page” found under your logo on the main page). Look for the “Default landing tab” drop down and select you’re newly created custom Facebook landing tab.

If you’re looking for a more detailed write-up check out How to Create a Custom Tab For Your Facebook Page by Rosita Cortez. She does a nice job visually walking you through the process.

Then move on to creating incentive by making people like your Facebook page before they see all your content. Those are by John Haydon. And he’s got video!

Lastly, check out How to create a landing tab that converts visitors to fans for tip and insight on what will attract and convert your Facebook fan page visitors.

Your turn … If you’ve got a custom Facebook landing tab please share it with us in the comments. And for those of you who have done this I’d LOVE to hear how effective it’s been, what you’ve learned and what your future plans are.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Frank Barry

Frank Barry, director of digital marketing at Blackbaud and blogger at npENGAGE, helps nonprofits use the Internet for digital communication, social media, and fundraising so they can focus changing the world. He’s worked with a diverse group of organizations including LIVESTRONG, United Methodist Church, American Heart Association, Big Brothers Big Sisters, ChildFund Int’l, InTouch Ministries, Heifer Int’l, University of Notre Dame and University of Richmond. Along with writing for industry publications like Mashable and Social Media Today, Frank facilitates discussions, presents solo sessions and organizes panels for industry conferences such as NTC, SXSW, BBCon and numerous others. When he’s out and about he enjoys talking to interesting people about how they are changing the world – check out his interviews. Say Hi on Twitter – @franswaa or Google+