Decoding the Secret Skills and Traits of a Facebook Marketing Expert

Worldwide, there are over 2.07 billion monthly active Facebook users for Q3 2017 (Facebook MAUs) which is a 16 percent increase year over year.

1.37 billion people on average log onto Facebook daily and are considered daily active users (Facebook DAU) for September 2017, which represents a 16 percent increase year over year.

50% of 18-24 year-olds go on Facebook when they wake up.

That’s a quite heavy dose of statistics there, you might be thinking. It is, and more than being heavy, it is intriguing. All this data just gives a sneak peak into the clear dominance of Facebook not just in the world of Social Media but actually into our lives.

Facebook is an integral part of our lives now. There, I said it.

It won’t be an exaggeration to say that, as far as Social Media is concerned, this is the “Age of Facebook”.

If there was ever a better time to be a Facebook Marketing Expert, it is now.

And this is the part where we need to lay down this not-so-comfortable truth: Being a regular run-of-the-mill Facebook Marketer is one thing, becoming a Facebook Marketing Expert is another.

In this article, we will look some of those secret skills and traits that might not be directly taught to you as a required skill-set for becoming a Facebook Marketer but are a well-kept secret sauce to becoming a Facebook Marketing Expert. The list presented here is in no particular order of importance.

So let’s get started on this exciting journey.

A Facebook Marketing Expert deeply understands that beyond all those screens, they still need to talk to the real human beings.

A deep and clear understanding of human behavior is one of the most profound and yet the most overlooked skills for Digital Marketers.

Don’t let your consumer behavior understanding be bogged down below the pile of data and analytics.

As a Facebook Marketing Expert, the core of your job is still to devise ways to reach out to and communicate with human beings.

If you miss out on this, no matter what else you do right, it’s not gonna add up.

Devising a communication strategy without basing it on an understanding of human behavior, is not losing the plot, it’s starting out without a plot in first place.

No brownie points for guessing where it would lead you to. Do this right, and everything else will follow.

You might find it a dumbfounded advice that data analytics is all about spotting and reading patterns, not a point-in-time data. But let’s be honest and confess to ourselves that we all are guilty of committing this at least once.

As Daniel Kahneman proves mentions in his groundbreaking bestsellerThinking Fast and Slow, dealing with statistical data doesn’t come to humans naturally. We’re hardwired to fumble at data analytics and we need constant practice to get our way around it.

Living with the acute awareness and constantly working on this uncomfortable reality would do us more good than we can imagine. 

So where does this understanding lead us?

Simple, if you work towards developing your ability to spot and read patterns out of the data that Facebook and other social media platforms present to you, you’re on your path to become a Facebook Marketing Expert.

Facebook Marketing (in fact, Social Media Marketing at large), is a lot about compelling writing. Since, we have already established that we’re essentially speaking to human beings as Social Media Marketers, killer writing skills not only come in handy, they’re indispensable.

Writing good content also gets rewarded by algorithms, be it Facebook’s algorithm or Google’s Page Ranking algorithm. It’s been a while since Google started considering Social Media presence, specifically Facebook, as one of the key factors while calculating SEO rankings for businesses.

Also, it’s no secret that we’re already living in an era where Google’s SEO places highest emphasis on the “contextual content” over anything else. 

Right content for the right context would go a long way into ensuring that you drive and deliver results as a Facebook marketer.

And if that’s not an essential trait of being a Facebook Marketing Expert, then what is?

We all know and understand that Social Media is a visual communication medium at its core. We like and act upon what we see on our Facebook Newsfeed, or not. 

Possessing or developing an intriguing aesthetic sense is a non-negotiable trait for a Facebook Marketing Expert. In fact, this is one of the secret skills that can put you right on the path of success as a Facebook Marketer.

You aesthetic sense as a Facebook Marketer drives the visual identity of your brand on Facebook. Maintaining a consistent and compelling visual brand identity is important on Facebook to create not only a top-of-mind brand recall but also to be recognized by the audience for consistency in the aesthetic representation built by you over a period of time.

A Facebook Marketing Expert knows how to create a clutter-breaking and thought provoking visual identity on the platform for its brand.

An intriguing aesthetic sense is one of the visionary traits that you would need to possess in order to become a Facebook Marketing Expert, not just another Facebook Marketer in the crowd.

In case, if you still haven’t firmly wrapped your mind around it yet, let me say it again loud and clear, this article is about secret sauce that separates a Facebook Marketing Expert from your regular Facebook Marketer.

Perseverance and patience are not only the virtues to succeed in real life, they are also the virtues that a Facebook Marketing Expert excels at.

Facebook Marketing or any Social Media Marketing, typically doesn’t give you results overnight. Even when it does, you need to keep doing the right things day in and day out, in order to keep it on the track to success.

The secret of sustainably succeeding on Facebook rather than being a one-time wonder, lies in getting Facebook Marketing fundamentals in place and doing the simplest of the right things diligently over and over again.

That’s when you not only witness the magic, you’re the one whose persistent efforts have created that magic. And since, you’re now in control of the process, you can keep repeating that magic again and again and at will.

If that’s not what a Facebook Marketing Expert is about, then what it is about?6.) Ease with Statistical and Analytical World.

In our earlier point about ability to spot and read patterns, we’ve already touched upon the importance of befriending statistical and analytical world.

Believe it or not, a lot of Facebook Marketers don’t come from a core marketing management background. Many have jumped the wagon when it became both hot and cool to become a Facebook Marketer.

That’s why many of the Facebook Marketers come equipped with or get comfortable with the creative aspects of their jobs namely copy and creatives. But what many of them don’t get comfortable with are the statistical and analytical aspects of their jobs.

Since we don’t need to get into how data analytics is important for a Facebook Marketer, I’ll go ahead and state the obvious yet the overlooked fact.

Mastering the statistical and analytical world of Facebook Marketing, for consistent performance optimization, is one of the non-negotiable secret skills that a Facebook Marketing Expert exhibits.7.) Ability to look at the bigger picture.

The world of Facebook Marketing is so alluring. There is so much happening all the time.

There are new algorithm updates to watch out for.

There are new campaigns to roll out.

There is the barrage of audience engagement to deal with, i.e. if you’re lucky to have audience engaging with your brand in first place.

And then there is just so much noise and meaningless clutter all over the platform.

It’s easy to get lost in amidst all this and to get lost.

And the worst part is, you might not even realize in the middle of the Social Media buzz surrounding you

This is one of the most common challenges that a Facebook Marketer faces and might not even realize it. Social Media and Facebook of all the platforms are consuming. It’s difficult to control the allure of Facebook even for the seasoned marketers.

A Facebook Marketing Expert would have the capability to look at the bigger picture of overall brand and marketing strategy and would understand the role that Facebook would need to play to further that strategy.

A Facebook Marketing Expert would know that Facebook Marketing is a means to an end, it’s not the end in itself. Hence, an expert would have the wisdom and the capability to drive their Facebook Marketing in alignment with the core brand strategy.

A Facebook Marketing Expert would have the wits to see through the clutter and to increase or control the efforts and resources on Facebook Marketing.

If you want to become a Facebook Marketing Expert, you need to develop the ability to look at the bigger picture under all conditions, if you haven’t already.

Now that you know the secret sauce of a Facebook Marketing Expert, do you think you’ve it in you to become one?

Let me take the liberty to tell you that, irrespective of your answer to that question, anyone with the right intent and commitment can become a Facebook Marketing Expert.

You need to put yourself out there and keep building your skills until you become one. There would be many tools, courses and other resources like a professionalFacebook Marketing Certification Coursethat would come in handy on your journey to become a Facebook Marketing Expert.

So what are you waiting for?