Facebook comment plugin good for brands

For some time, it’s been possible for you, as an individual, to sign into Facebook-integrated brand sites with your Facebook account, comment on content, and then elect to have the comments posted to your Facebook profile’s Wall. In a promising addition, Facebook has added a new comment plugin, so that now, when your friends chime in on your comment (from Facebook), their content appears not only on Facebook, but also on the  site from which you originally posted.

This is good news for brands, as it increases their ability to get attention for content posted on their websites. Plus, conversations are integrated, instead of fragmented, which adds to their richness and depth. The viral effect of such content making its way through numerous friend networks is huge — but only part of the benefit. Here’s more:

As your customers move across the social landscape, it’s ideal if your brand culture, personality, and content are consistent everywhere they run into you. You’re investing resources in creating experiences for and starting up conversations with people. You put a lot of thought and planning into the programming you create for them — so the wider the reach, the more exposure it gets, the more likely it’ll result in a broader, more engaging exchange. Assuming your content gets people talking, you have the potential to get considerable leverage from your efforts — more brand buzz, customer advocacy, product feedback, insight , or even sales.

With judicious posting from your brand Facebook Page, you can spread the conversation around even further. Because Facebook has recently allowed brand Pages to comment on other sites, you can start a thread on your brand website from your Facebook brand Page account, electing to post also to the brand Page Wall. Now all your brand Page fans see the content, becoming aware of the broader conversation and capable of joining in (either from Facebook or from the brand website).

We’re still looking at the additional implications — especially for moderation; more on that later. For sure, with the potential of greatly-increased volume, you’ll want to be prepared with a sound moderation approach, supporting a savvy community programming and management strategy.