Please Like Me! :)

I have never, to my knowledge, walked up to anyone and said, "Will you please like me?" And never, ever, did I walk up to a complete stranger and try to bribe them to like me.

Yet, this happens to me on Facebook on a very regular basis. Sometimes it is an acquaintance suggesting I like their page and other times it is a complete stranger suggesting I like their page (through advertisements). Only on a few occasions have I liked the page and I'm usually turned off by someone asking me to like their page when it comes through the mass "will you like me" option from Facebook.

I like people. Real people. Friends or people I know well enough to qualify as a friend on Facebook. Most of your customers do business with you, not your business. They want to be your friend, not like your business page.

So please, stop asking people to like your page. It's desperate. For every like you get, you've turned off probably 99 other people. Worse, your Facebook business page is so boring, I best most of the people who did like your page eventually regret it.

Perhaps you are different. Your page is interesting. You are the exception. Unfortunately, outside of big brands (I'm talking sports team, Fortune 500, etc.), most pages are boring. If you want me to like your page, give me a reason why and be sure I continue to get benefit.

When I was in high school I wanted the captain of the cheerleading squad to like me. I could drive, she couldn't, so I drove her where she needed to go.

22 years and 4 kids later, I'm still driving wherever she wants to go. So I guess I kept her interest (she has her own car now, a minivan, woo hoo!).

How will you keep your customers interest after they "like" you? Give me good reasons and once I'm there, keep me engaged (no minivan required).

Now, to prove my point, please go like Geiger on Facebook...

Geiger CIO Dale Denham, MAS+ provides practical insights on how you can benefit from technology in no nonsense terms. Follow him on Twitter:@GeigerCIO.