Installing Facebook Social plugins

Does your brand have an active Facebook page?

You can add a plugin on your website linking to your Facebook page and bringing key Facebook functions to your website. There are a range of plugins available that will display feeds from your Facebook page on your website. This is a good way to promote your site and also gain "likes" from people who would otherwise just visit your site.

Check the Facebook Developers section for the types of plugins ready for you to install.

I recommend using the Like Button on every page of your site:

This will create a story that the visitor likes the page that this is on, shared to their friends when clicked. It will also create a link on the person’s Facebook profile going to your page that was liked. The benefit from a marketing perspective is that some people in this person’s network may also be interested in your site and can reach it easily from Facebook. Think of it as the new version of "word-of-mouth".

You can get the code to install the like button here. Adding it to the footer of your site is probably the best option so it can get onto every page.

Another plugin that I recommend is the Like Box:

This shows the most recent posts on your wall and some of the people who already like your Facebook profile. Visitors can like you on Facebook without having to visit your profile and add themselves as on of your fans directly from your site. Use this plugin if your Facebook page is actually active and if you have a decent number of likes, otherwise it would just be embarrassing.

This plugin is best installed as part of your homepage. You can get the code to install the Like Box here. You will need your profile number which is in the URL string of your Facebook profile. The width and number of pictures of connections can be adjusted within the code to fit into your page.

In most cases you will only need the iframe code.

Ensure that every visitor has the opportunity to connect with your brand. These social plugins are a must have for the connected organisation that is open to interacting with its fans.