Move over fan pages… the “Like” icon is in the house!! So if you are even the least bit active on Facebook you may see your friends posting complaints about the new “Like” icon - because once again Facebook has made changes- and people do not like change..duh.

However, this could be a really cool cross selling tool for businesses. Check this out: Facebook developer tools have created the Open Graphic Protocol. It works by the designer/developer (that would be us) adding a “Like” icon to any or all pages of a client’s website, applying specific meta data to that icon, and when users are on that page they can click “Like” which will connect them directly their Facebook account, and in turn will display that “So and So likes ISOCNET’s “whatever you put in for meta data here”. Make sense?

If not, think about this. We have an ecommerce store- say Custom Wine Online (one of our current customer sites we are working on). CWO requests us to put a “Like” icon on every product page. We place the icon someplace visible on the page and apply meta data that is very specific for that product. Let’s use the product “Cabernet Sauvignon” as an example. I click on “Like” (see the box below)- it logs me into my account (without actually taking me to Facebook)- and displays on my feed for ALL my friends to see “Jamie Brumley likes Custom Wine Online’s Cabernet Sauvignon”.  How cool is that?? It’s instant advertising! You can also use this as a social media icon, so it doesn’t have to be page or product specific. The sky is basically the limit!
 


I really thought Facebook was dying for businesses- but this is ingenious! I love what they have come up with. And once the frustration from users regarding change has died down, I think they will start to accept and use it more and more….until the next big thing comes along that is :)

Cheers and happy Facebooking!

Ready to get started and add the Facebook icon on your site?

Check out Developer Tools for Facebook to learn more, or call one of our Account Managers today to talk about your options 859-525-8730.
http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/plugins/like