Area businesses go social

AREA — Ten years ago, it started to become very unusual for a business to lack a website.

These days, it's becoming unusual for a business to lack a Facebook page, and area businesses are scrambling to establish themselves on Facebook.

Facebook is a social networking website. The company provides a free web page to individuals and businesses alike, with an emphasis on allowing people to network with each other socially. The format has perfected the art of building a community in cyber-space, which may be why it has become universally popular.

Two years ago, Facebook had a staggering 100 million users. Two months ago, it announced that it had surpassed the 500 million-user mark, a number that represents one in 14 humans on the planet.

Karen Hakala, senior vice president of marketing at Norway Savings Bank (NSB), said that when she first started exploring the idea of putting the bank on Facebook, the numbers were compelling.

"A couple of hundred thousand people are on Facebook just in our markets," she said. Recognizing an opportunity to connect with the community, Hakala started the process to establish the bank's presence.

In August, NSB started building its site, and in late September, it went live, promoting the page with ad campaigns both online and in its 20 branches.

"We saw a real great opportunity for us to build an online conversation and community with people in our markets," said Hakala.

In part, the number of people who connect to a Facebook site determines its success. They do so by saying they "like" a business (or "friend" an individual), and the members of the community can comment on anything that the site's regulators care to post.

At the beginning of a day last week, Norway Savings had 975 people signed up. A couple of hours later, it had grown to 977. By the time this article is published, it will likely have crested 1,000.

The number of people who "like" the bank is driven by those who want to be involved with the community of the bank, or those who want to enter a contest or take part in another online activity.

The site represents a way for the bank to get out information about its products, but it also functions as a virtual suggestion box, with space for customers and prospective customers to weigh in with their opinions on the bank.

But on Facebook, the suggestion box talks back.

Facebook can be especially important to nonprofit organizations like The Progress Center which can be extremely short on resources.

The Progress Center began their page about a year ago, says Director Kristin Benedix. They use it as a free way to publicize events, news, and initiatives,

"It's a way of keeping connected with the members of our community," said Benedix.

Businesses of all shapes and sizes can be found, and they all seem to use it for something a little different.

The Advertiser Democrat posts links to news stories and invites submissions for the "Person on the Street" feature. Norway's Cafe Nomad offers daily food specials.  The Bridgton Twin Drive-In Theatre  lists movie times and asks for input on movies its customers would like to see. The Deluxe Diner in Rumford posts family news and is currently asking customers to vote on a new logo.

There will always be businesses that resist trends like the Facebook phenomenon, or even the Internet, partially because they're uncomfortable with new technologies. 

A hundred years ago, some tradition-minded businesses felt the same way about a different new-fangled invention that was sweeping the nation.

It was called the telephone.