Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on Seattle 2.0, and imported to GeekWire as part of our acquisition of Seattle 2.0 and its archival content. For more background, see this post.
By Nathan Parcells
A couple of days ago something really cool happened. I was looking to work with a couple of university clubs and professors to help promote an internship event on campus and none were returning my emails. This is typical of the academic sphere – despite the fact that many universities operate like a business, academic culture generally opposes outside businesses (and for good reason).
Hitting the wall I started googling other key contacts at the school and found a couple of clubs who had university Facebook pages and their admins listed. I decided to try communicating about our internship event directly with 15 students and professors via Facebook. The response rate went from 5% via email to over 80% on Facebook using the same exact message!
The message was the same, the tone was the same, but the difference in response was huge. A light bulb went off (similar to the day I learned that the Facebook poke could actually be used to re-connect with old friends). I have gone on and done additional tests and I now believe that Facebook is the most underutilized and potentially powerful tool for networking, not just with students but with organizations, and business partners too. If you don’t believe me here are a few reasons why the Facebook message is distinct from a LinkedIn mail or an average email.
1. 1. Facebook messages feel special. I don’t get Facebook messages all that often. I usually ignore messages coming from Facebook pages or groups but a personal message from someone on Facebook is ALWAYS something I will read.
2. 2. Facebook messages are personal. When you get a Facebook message you see the person’s picture and additional info which goes a long way in generating that all important personal feel.
3. 3. Facebook is not spam. People rarely get spam in their Facebook inbox and are more inclined to trust you than an email from a company address.
I have since initiated a number of other valuable conversations with business and associations using this same tact. The winning feature is the excitement of a new facebook message – LinkedIn feels somewhat personal so on occasion a new inmail message generates excitement but since it is a professional rather than a social network it lacks the same excitement. This may change as Facebook gives more and more tools to businesses, a trend that began a few years ago, but until then Facebook messages feel special and therefore are incredibly valuable (and should be used sparingly but to your advantage).