by Bobbi Stonskas

Created on: December 03, 2009

Facebook is one of the leading socializing networks on the internet. It is customary for people to post their status once, twice, thrice times a day or more. Non-profit organizations have jumped on the Facebook bandwagon. Using a social networking website should not be the sole method of advertisement, but it can enhance marketing efforts with no posting charge and very little manpower.

Non-profit organizations are setting up user profiles as though they are an individual. Marketing people to network their connection is needed either through word of mouth, friend recommendations or more traditional forms of advertisement. Once a person accepts the non-profit as a friend, every time the organization updates their status it will appear for those on their network.

Well planned out updates are the key to making Facebook an effective marketing piece. There are few key points in creating an effective post:

1. Keep the information limited, yet powerful. If the post is too lengthy or too boring, the members will either disregard the posts completely or remove you from their network. Either way, you are losing the ear for your marketing piece.

2. Make the post relevant to your network. If your networked "friends" are all under the age of 20, don't post messages about preparing for retirement. Teenagers believe they are invincible and most haven't even made a 10 year plan yet.

3. Vary your message. Your primary goal may be to educate the public on your cause. People like to be entertained and repeating the same message in different passages will appear repetitious and boring. Not only change the type of messages you post, try linking videos or recent news posts that enhance your message.

4. Limit your updates. Since posting on Facebook is free, don't take advantage of your message displaying on your networks' home pages. At most, update your status once a day and at minimum update your post once a week. A weekly post is plenty to keep your audience informed and interested.

Facebook is an inexpensive method to increase your marketability, but should not be used as a sole method for advertisement. Membership is free. Adding people to your network is free. Putting your organization on the web is free. As long as you follow some the general guidelines listed above, you can make Facebook work well for you. Getting people to read your message keeps your organization fresh in their mind and not forgotten.

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