By now, you’ve heard this saying: Facebook is like a virtual cocktail party. There are some people in your network that you know well; others you don't. One of the most written-about topics when it comes to social media, especially Facebook, is what one should write in his or her status updates. With fan pages, it becomes even more troublesome. How do you write in a tone that is both conversational yet true to the brand? Too often, brands resort to simple selling and promoting. Put yourself in the reader's shoes. Do you want to log on to your Facebook page (aka the “virtual cocktail party”) and have a sales guy hawking his wares in your newsfeed?

I didn't think so.

Adding to the confusion is that those in the trenches of social media often advise conflicting ratios for Updates of Conversation versus Promotion. Some experts advise an 80% to 20% rule: 80% of the time, Promote, but 20% of the time have a conversation. Of late, that ratio is flipping, and most social media pros try to keep it a 60%/40% ratio: 60% of the time, talk about industry related topics, but don’t directly promote your business. Personally, I’d shoot for something in the middle.

I use the band Green Day as my example of this. I’m a big fan of them so I joined their fan page. When I go to Green Day’s fan page, I want to read about the band. I don’t necessarily want to have their records or t-shirts pushed in my face, but I do want to hear some interesting facts about them, or learn about some of the highlights from recent shows. Translate this idea to your store. What can you do to talk about your store without it feeling like you are selling them? Talk about yourself, for starters—share with them something interesting you did last night, like “Hey, I went to a Green Day concert! Were any of you there?”  Or post something your store employees did: “So we had an intervention at the store—the employees told me I had to let go of my Green Day obsession.”

Okay, I’m joking about that last example, but you get the idea. Show your personal side, talk about the accomplishments of your employees (“Laura won Employee of the Month!”) and have some fun. Remember, if Facebook is a virtual cocktail party, you are the host of your party, err, page.

Here are five more ideas for the days when you need some inspiration to get the conversation started:

1. Give them the facts. Post some interesting tidbits about diamonds or other gems. "Did you know that crushed diamonds are often used in mineral-based makeup?" People like to be educated and informed, even on trivia. Don't make your update a micro-course in biology, but don't be afraid to inform, either, especially if it is unusual and interesting information.

2. Ask questions that are fun for readers to respond to, but don't require them to write a book. You'll get more responses. At the end of last year, Blackberry asked Facebook readers what was their New Years Resolution. They got a hearty response rate with most people just giving one resolution. If they had asked them to "share you top five highlights from 2009," they may have not gotten as much interaction, because people need to first think of five actual highlights, and then they have to describe those highlights. It could get messy or convoluted, or the prospect of simply spending all that time on Facebook may bore them so they move on. Like most things in life, keep it simple.

3. Tie an update into a current event, and throw in a product shot. “Julia Roberts would look have looked great in this necklace featured below at the premier of ‘Eat, Pray, Love.’” Take it a step further and ask, “But what kind of earrings would you have suggested she worn with it? Studs or chandelier?”

4. Use your Fan Page to answer consumer questions. Every day, client services teams field questions from customers. Use some of the broader ones as a point of conversation on your wall. "We received an interesting question from a customer the other day . . ." then briefly explain the question and give a quick (but useful!) answer.

5. Give them something to watch.  You Tube and Funny or Die are rich with videos that may relate to your field in a comical way, or, may just be extremely viral and worth posting. It doesn't have to be a funny clip either: if it's relevant to your product and may educate your fans in some way, post it. Give credit where credit is due, of course.

Caveat to this: show them video of an interesting event from your store, like a trunk show. Shoot a video interview with your supplier reps when they are in the store. Talk about exciting new lines, and makes the jewelry different and fabulous.

Don't be afraid to be imaginative, keep it simple, and take a few risks with your content: provocative posts (within reason) often get the best responses. Now get out there and have some fun!