Vanity and BtoB…Am I missing something?

I don’t get it.  Facebook fan pages, that is.  Recently I have been “fanning” some Facebook pages for friends of mine so they can get enough people on board to be able to get their vanity URL.

What’s a vanity URL?  If you’re old it’s like the killer phone number companies used to get, you remember 1800aintIgrt for instance.  Only in a web address.  So in this case it would be www.facebook.com/aintigreat…or something like that.  I have a facebook fan page for my business but I just haven’t jumped on the bandwagon of begging people to “fan” it.  And I’ve been thinking about why…here’s what I came up with.

1) I don’t get Facebook fan pages for btob.  Yes, I’ve read the articles on how to do a successful fan page.  And the case studies.  Has anyone else noticed that the pages everyone is talking about are for B to C companies?  That makes sense.  Give exclusive offers to customers…and have enough of an audience to make it work.  So I get that, coupons, freebies, new product launches…it all makes sense…but not for btob necessarily.  And not for me, necessarily as a consumer.

2) My reason for having a fan page is probably a little different than others.  Most of what I use my Facebook page for is fluff, friends and family.  I won’t say there isn’t crossover with business, because there is.  But if business people want to connect on Facebook I typically let them know that the best place for them to be is my business page.  You see if they want to connect to me, I want them to…but I don’t want to have to censure myself on Facebook for that particular audience…and it is a different audience.

3) How long will it last?  Facebook at the top of the SM media pile, that is.  Wasn’t it just a couple of years ago that Myspace.com was the darling of the media, internet eyeballs and corporate giants?  And look how fast and far it has fallen.  Unless you’re in the entertainment arena do you really care that you don’t have a Myspace page?  I wonder what the next vanity goldrush will be…and when.

4) I just don’t get it…even as a consumer.  As a customer show me you value me for me and price your stuff correctly.  Don’t make me get a special card or go to a special website or be part of your “fan club” to get better pricing.  I don’t have time for it…and I may punnish your brand for it.

5) TMI – I have fanned my friends sites and I like the information they provide…but I am also connected to most of these people on Twitter and find that information to be much more timely.  And the third party applications to manage that information to be much better than Facebook.  So do I really need that link about how to make my Facebook fan page better 3 different times? (twitter, reg. facebook, and from the page I’ve fanned)…I don’t think so.

I certainly could be wrong and maybe I will rue the day I decided not to beg for the appropriate number of fans to get my vanity URL – which probably wouldn’t even work…after all www.facebook.com/careerlifeconnection is quite long.  (Pause  – for all of you who have told me repeatedly my company name is too long – please feel free to snicker.)

And if I am wrong do tell…because I just don’t get it!