[Webinar] Sink or Swim: Why Multi-Location Brands Need to Be Working With a Facebook Marketing Partner

Facebook Marketing Partners demonstrate excellence in their industry. Here's why that matters...

Not all social media is created equally. Some platforms like SOCi have a reputation for excellence in their field that can make a big difference when it comes to your Facebook Marketing experience. Recently, we sat down with Will Price, Director of Earned Media, and Jacob Chappell, VP of Enterprise Sales, to learn more about how Facebook Marketing Partners affect brand marketing strategy in 2018.

Why Choose a Facebook Marketing Partner?

Essentially, Facebook Marketing Partners (or FMPs specialize in all things Facebook Marketing. They are the go-to resource to optimize all aspects of your Facebook campaigns. FMPs work with your brand to offer custom solutions to your social media marketing strategy, insights into optimizations and targeting, as well as overall better technological advancements that help to bring your campaigns to the next level. We know, when you put it that way, why would anyone choose NOT to work with a Facebook Marketing Partner? But just in case you're not entirely sold, let's take a look at how Facebook chooses their partners.

How Facebook Chooses Marketing Partners

Facebook vets partners for excellence by industry, country, and 1 or more of 6 specialties:

Ad Technology
Community Management
Creative Platforms
Small Business Solutions
Advanced Onboarding
Advanced Measurement Techniques

In addition to a fairly rigorous application process, Marketing Partners must “demonstrate excellence” in several areas including proving themselves in a specialty area in at least one major country, resources to stay current with fast-moving technology and policy changes, a transparent business model, and a track record of client success. Facebook also considers several intangible factors including whether the company brings something new to the FMP program, is aligned with Facebook's vision and policies, and how they maintain strong relationships with clients and with Facebook. So Facebook isn't just looking for partners who they view as great, but whose clients would say the same.

So Why Does it Matter?

The process of becoming a Facebook Marketing Partner comes back to one thing: demonstrating excellence. If you’re looking for a social media solution and you’re planning to allocate budget to a platform, there’s no doubt that you want that solution to demonstrate excellence to YOU. Chances are, if that company has already shown Facebook they are worthy of partnership, they’re more likely to impress you, too. Furthermore, the social media landscape is changing daily in 2018. Working with an approved Facebook Marketing Partner can help to ensure your company has access to three things:

Personalized assistance from professionals
Insider-Knowledge of future updates to the platform
Access to the Facebook API

The recent API lockdown tightened security on the Facebook platform and heightened the safety of data and user information. However, this resulted in all non-FMPs getting blocked out as public API's were shut down. Losing access can devastate marketers using the Facebook platform for campaigns, making working with FMPs more important now than ever before. No matter what you’re looking for out of your Facebook Marketing strategy, a Facebook Marketing Partner is guaranteed to increase your success and help you find the right content, strategies, and technologies to protect your ad dollars, boost engagement, and improve brand perception on social media. Want to learn more about Facebook Marketing Partners and how SOCi can help you streamline your multi-location social media management? Check out the full webinar here.