b'MODERN MARKETINGTake a Look at Diversifying Marketing OutreachRelying solely on Facebook and its associated platforms is living on borrowed-time media. We might treat it as if itsEvanne ours to do with as we wish, but that is not the case. SchmarderFacebook is front-page news thesethrough Facebook, Instagram, Whatsembeds itself deeper and deeper intoing, they are aging and their interests, days and for all the wrong reasons. ItApp and Messenger, it can spell tem- our collective psyche and businessesmotivations and onsite behavior are feels like a sea change is afoot, notporary,financialdoom.Theresnocontinue to strive for more and morechanging.onlyatthecompanybutintheirdoubt that mastering Facebook is anfans and followers, its position is thatTocombatthispotentialdipin users, too. Theres word, through theongoingaccomplishment.Itsex- unless you actively solicit email ad- users (and profit), look for the algo-very public whistle-blower, of a com- tremely convenient (though some- dressesandcontactinformation,rithms to tweak toward the under-30 mon, meeting-end chant over at Onetimes confusing) to run a marketingyour users data is Facebook and itscrowd. Internal documents submit-Hacker Way, company over country.operationfromitsBusinessSuite.associated platforms assets. The per- ted to the SEC revealed precisely this. The #deletefacebook movement thatsHowever, if you rely exclusively onfect embodiment of the adage, noth- Onetellingexcerptreads,Most been around for a few years continuesFacebook to book sites, respond to is- ingisfree.Theinformationreinsyoung adults perceive Facebook as a to gain traction. And still, Zuck andsues,answerquestionsorprovideloosen slightly if you advertise on theplace for people in their 40s and 50s. team continue their quest for world- services, you were down and out withplatform and/or install tracking pix- Young adults perceive content as bor-wide (web) domination via the orga- very little recourse.els on your website. But again, youing, misleading and negative. They nizations new moniker, Meta, and itsYouve heard the term borrowedhave to play Mother, may I? and sheoften have to get past irrelevant con-ambitiousmetaverseprojectandmedia from me in the past. Its one ofhas every right to say no. tent to get to what matters. It added ever-changing algorithms.three prongs: earned media (PR andTo be fair, its not only a Facebookthat they have a wide range of nega-Therecenthours-longoutageother such coverage); owned mediapractice,itsthewayofallsocialtive associations with Facebook in-acrossitsfamilyofplatformsand(the digital properties and informa- mediaplatformscirculatingincluding privacy concerns, impact to then another shorter outage a fewtion you own and control); and bor- todays marketing world. Facebooktheir wellbeing.days later was rife with all the wrongrowedmedia(piggybackingonjust happens to be the biggest andkind of PR. The last time Facebookpublic platforms). Each is importantmost aggressive. Market smart hadthiskindofblipacrosstheirand serves a valuable purpose, butHavinganactivepresenceon screen was in 2019, a 24-hour doozy. only one is the property of the busi- Protecting your assetsFacebook continues to be one of the ness owner. The wise modern marketer knowsmostimportantmarketingtactics Whats yours is mineRelying solely on Facebook and itsthis and takes measures to maximizeavailabletobusinessestoday.But For the casual user, one of billionsassociated platforms is living on bor- their borrowed position. Yes, have athats not enough. You have to market worldwide, this might not be a bigrowed-time media. We might treat itrobust presence on Facebook but ag- smart. Understand your audiencedeal. But for businesses that rely onas if its ours to do with as we wish,gressively drive your fans and follow- their ages and family structure, likes connectingtotheircommunitiesbut that is not the case. As Facebookers to subscribe to your email list.and dislikes, how far they are willing Post about subscriber-only specials,to travel to reach a park, etc. and usefulleadmagnetsandexclusivedevelop a strategy to bring them into valued-camperevents.Regularlyyour owned media fold.market to them via personalized, rel- If Facebook fell off the earth to-evantmessagesdirectfromyourmorrow,howwouldyouconnect business. with your current and potential cus-Consider what would happen totomers? Would you dilute your social yourmarketingprogramandyourmedia presence across a variety of business if people did leave Facebookplatforms (not owned by a single en-in droves or another outage occurredtity) based upon the audience youd duringtheheightofyourbookinglike to reach? Would you develop a re-season.Takingstepstoownyourliable and interesting email market-media costs time and money, sure. Itsingprogram?Wouldyouupyour alsoaninsurancepolicy.Oneyouvideo marketing savvy? Would you cant afford to overlook.modernize your website, paying spe-cial attention to SEO?Audience adjustmentI hope you said yes to all the above. In recent reporting, weve learnedAfter all, the (digital marketing) uni-that Facebook, as digital platformsverse is much bigger than Facebook. are known to do, and rightly so, is once again tweaking its algorithm. AnEvanne Schmarder, a longtime WCM algorithm, in case this is a new termModernMarketingcolumnistand to you, is a set of rules that preciselyprincipal at Roadabode Productions, defines a sequence of operations. Itswill soon be releasing the second book how and to whom social media con- in her Marketing Your RV Park/Camp-tent surfaces. For example, if personground Online series. Details to follow Xlikesthesetopicsandpages,isat roadabode.comWCMfriends with others that do, and/or searches for this type of product or informationontheInternet,they might be interested in certain Face-book posts or ads. Its a manipulated form of organic content marketing.Like all businesses of any repute, Facebook has and continues to face stiffcompetitionforprimedemo-graphics. That is, those that have the most spending potential and social mediadedication.Forquitesome time younger users, a coveted group, have been decamping to platforms designed for them, namely Snap and Tik Tok. This leaves an older genera-tion on Facebook. While still spend-8 December 2021Woodalls Campground Magazine'