It’s time to recognize businesses who are putting it all “out there.” They have not only made the leap of faith to participate and engage the marketplace using Facebook but are also rocking it daily. In some cases, you will see them posting in the evening hours and weekends alerting followers about what’s happening in their store, kitchen or on stage right then (“You won’t want to miss this!”) or breaking news about what’s just arrived in inventory (“You better get here quick if you missed out last time.”).

So without further ado, and in no particular order, here is the first ever Whatcom Marketing Top 10 Busiest Facebook Rockers List:

Bellingham Herald
The news industry has seen dramatic changes over the past decade. The Herald has stepped up and led by example with its use of social media to alert their audience of breaking news and recently published stories while interacting in the comments.

Western Washington University
In case you didn’t know, Facebook was born to serve the college crowd. So maybe it is no big surprise to see WWU making a lot of use of it. WWU is keeping followers up-to-date by posting links to news, videos and pictures produced by departments across their campus.

Boundary Bay Brewery
Amy Jones has been leading Boundary Bay’s social media and public relations efforts (yes, they are totally interrelated) for some time and it is paying off. Boundary Bay not only has a large following but also a large number of people are interacting with their Facebook content (almost 250 by today’s count). Jones also makes great use of their visibility to help promote other local companies and organizations. Well done!

Merch Bot
Merch Bot’s Facebook stream reads like a pulp fiction book about a retail store. There’s some rough humor, blow-by-blow accounts of obnoxious customers (and staff!), neighborhood watch reports and all the while finding a way to weave in a reference to their current product inventory.

StreatFood - Honorable mention for recently posting while on vacation
When your business moves from place to place every day, and sometimes not as planned, being able to communicate your current location and menu is a must. Streat Food has been doing daily as well as they serve up great food.

Masquerade Wine Company
A relatively recent transplant to Whatcom County,  Masquerade Wine Company wasted no time getting busy on Facebook to build up a local following and keep them informed as their’s is a constantly changing product. They made good use of Facebook during this year’s late ‘crush,’ putting out the call for volunteers.

Silver Reef Hotel Casino and Spa
With something new happening every week, it isn’t hard for Silver Reef to keep it interesting on their Facebook page. They’ve recently begun incorporating video and have added a tab that allows you to book a room at their hotel directly from the Facebook page. Sweet!

Village Books
Being one of the most revered local small businesses in the area didn’t stop Village Books from developing yet another facet to their marketing efforts. Posting about the parade of authors speaking at their store combined with community outreach and promoting titles and literary news of interest to their customers keeps the Village Books Facebook page fresh with new content.

Johnson’s Towing - Honorable Mention for best use of video
Equipped with an inexpensive ‘Flip’ camera, Dan Johnson records his interesting encounters as a tow truck operator. He expanded this recently to provide some traffic behavior insight and advice for getting through some of our county’s trouble spots. Good stuff.

Print & Copy Factory
Another popular long-time local small business and no stranger to getting the word out, Print & Copy Factory keeps their audience informed and enthused. They mix promotional offers with news and articles containing encouragement and advice directed at small business owners.

I know other businesses and organizations are making good use of their businesses’ Facebook pages. Step forward in the comments here and share how you are using Facebook to better serve your customers (and don’t forget to include a link to your page!).