From Marianne Hansen Posted from 165.106.220.146 on June 23, 2009 at 5:46 PM (GMT)
My experience not about an orchestra page, but from a pair of businesses: There are three things you get from a Facebook page that you do not get from a website. The first is that it is absurdly easy to add information, so you don't need to jump through hoops with additional software, uploading, passwords, etc. - and you can easily add a couple more people as administrators so you can share the responsibility for putting up new info. Second, you can provide timely, even late-breaking news, and no one expects the material to stand the test of time - everybody who uses Facebook understands it is ephemeral. So you can put up pictures of the concert, a special thanks to a board member, a request for volunteer assistance to complete a task RIGHT NOW - and in three days when it's no longer of interest, no one has to look at it. Third, the information is delivered directly to the desktop of people who actually want to know about it - since they have opted in it is focused advertising at its best.
It may take a little effort to get people to sign up in the first place. I suggest inviting everyone you know who is connected to the orchestra to become a fan of the page (explaining to them how to find it if necessary) - and ask them to invite others. I have seen a couple of pages go up, and I think you need about 25 relevant people to get the ball rolling -after that they will pick it up off each other's pages.
Comments
Posted from 165.106.220.146 on June 23, 2009 at 5:46 PM (GMT)
My experience not about an orchestra page, but from a pair of businesses: There are three things you get from a Facebook page that you do not get from a website. The first is that it is absurdly easy to add information, so you don't need to jump through hoops with additional software, uploading, passwords, etc. - and you can easily add a couple more people as administrators so you can share the responsibility for putting up new info. Second, you can provide timely, even late-breaking news, and no one expects the material to stand the test of time - everybody who uses Facebook understands it is ephemeral. So you can put up pictures of the concert, a special thanks to a board member, a request for volunteer assistance to complete a task RIGHT NOW - and in three days when it's no longer of interest, no one has to look at it. Third, the information is delivered directly to the desktop of people who actually want to know about it - since they have opted in it is focused advertising at its best.
It may take a little effort to get people to sign up in the first place. I suggest inviting everyone you know who is connected to the orchestra to become a fan of the page (explaining to them how to find it if necessary) - and ask them to invite others. I have seen a couple of pages go up, and I think you need about 25 relevant people to get the ball rolling -after that they will pick it up off each other's pages.
Good luck!