– Let’s Get Started using a Facebook Business Page –
Here’s why : Facebook has nearly one billion active users – over half log on daily and then spend about an hour on the site.
Having a Facebook business page is critical – you will gain tremendous visibility and have the opportunity to meet your customers and prospects where they currently are – online.
Advertising has changed, Media has changed, Marketing has changed – Facebook gives you great access to customers, great access to prospects and should be a key element in your online marketing plan. Facebook is even a great place to start your online marketing plan. The time to get started with a Facebook page is right now.
Personal Profile first: you probably have your own Facebook business page (if not go to facebook.com and get one) now, the Facebook terms of service say that you can have only one account in your name – so we’re going to focus on getting a page set up for your business, under your business name. But let’s make sure your personal profile is squared away – here are a couple of key considerations:
First – your photo : it’s called Facebook for a reason, you’ve got to put up a photo of yourself – not your dog or your kids or a flower or a logo. Dress nice, paste a charming smile on your face and have some casual head shots done, either by a pro or by someone who knows how to take a decent picture.
If you’re going to use your personal page for a mix of friends and networking (and I highly recommend that you do) naturally, you’ll want to put your best foot forward.
Second – your bio : utilize the mini-bio section just below your photo, you’ve got 245 characters, use them wisely. Your bio should be chatty, natural and first person (I’m a -blank- , I do -blank-) lighten up, have a little fun, but be concise.
Facebook offers great flexibility to adjust your privacy settings, use friends lists, filter what you see of others and what others see of you – but remember, it’s Facebook, it’s about sharing (sometimes over sharing) – if you want something to be private, secret and confidential, don’t put it on the internet. Don’t list your home address, your bank account info, your birthday – well, don’t list the year at least – I show the month and day because it’s kind of fun to get a million ‘Happy Birthday’ messages from my friends on my birthday.
Your networking starts with your personal profile – use it. Facebook maxes out personal profiles at 5,000 connections. The average Facebook user has about 150 connections and Sociologists tell us that most people can name about 2,000 people from their lives. Grow your connections as you are comfortable, but realize that (for the most part) the lines between strictly personal and strictly professional, online, have blurred a bit.
Once you’re happy with your own Facebook page, it’s time to set one up for your business. Facebook comes in 3 flavors if you will : Personal Profiles, Business Pages, or what used to be known as Fan Pages and Groups or Community Pages.
Right now were focusing on the first two – and here is the big difference between them, and why a business page is so valuable.
For you and I to be connected on Facebook, I have to send you a friend request and then you have to accept it – only then are we connected. Business pages are open to anyone, there is no barrier to entry, no hurdles to overcome, it’s easy for people to join, or “Like” your business page and connect with you.
Oh, a not so insignificant additional benefit is that Google indexes Facebook, so your search engine visibility is going up as well, and of course you’ll give your fans plenty of ways to go to your website or blog and ample incentive to join your email list.
So – here’s what you need to know about Facebook Pages :
You can have an unlimited number of Facebook pages – but start with just one!
You can have an unlimited number of connections or “Fan’s” (people who “Like” your page) – there are no limits.
Facebook Pages are public and people can find you – they don’t need to be a fan or even logged on to Facebook to find you – and find you they will, because all the content you post to your page gets indexed by Google.
Your personal profile will be tied to your page and you’ll be the Admin of the page – you can add other Admins and you should, but carefully : all Admins have full power and that includes adding and deleting other Admins – give that kind of access only to someone you trust.
When you are setting up your page, choose title and category carefully – you can’t change this once you set it.
Lastly, here are 5 points to consider and cover as you build your page;
ONE – What’s your objective? What do you want to achieve with your Facebook marketing? Social Media Marketing is about engaging people via the online networks – where they already are (and Facebook is the biggest, broadest of the social networks) with that engagement leading to exposure, brand connection, improved customer satisfaction and ultimately (if done right) to increased sales, revenue growth and profits.
The question is – what do you want, what do you expect, what would you like to achieve – and what are you going to give in exchange?
TWO – What’s your strategy for look and feel? Putting up a page is easy, refining it takes some effort – you can have a custom landing page, you can add apps – with your objectives in mind you can build.
If your objective is to build your email list, have at least one opt-in box, if you want to drive people to your company website, design with that in mind. But please – start now and start from where you are; get started, get going, get something up – you can add and improve as you go along – don’t over think it – just do it. Look at other brands Pages and borrow a little inspiration from them to get started.
THREE – How will you promote your Page? Here’s where your personal profile comes in handy – “invite” all your friends to your business page – when they join, a promo note appears in their stream letting their friends know they “Like” your page – some of those friends will take the recommendation, go check it out and join as well.
Remember, your Facebook Page is a great way to connect with your existing customers, improve their experience and connection with your company (so they buy more from you if appropriate) – how are you going to reach them? On premise signage? In store promotion? Link from your website? Link from your email newsletter? Yes – Yes – Yes and yes, ASK them.
FOUR – How are you going to engage with your fans? Where is your content coming from? How much of it is about you, how much is about them? Are you blogging on a consistent basis? Ever? Are you posting videos about your business and your people on a consistent basis? Sometimes? Are you linking YouTube and your blog to your Facebook – and vice-a-versa?
What resources are you going to devote to managing this element of your business and marketing? Social Media has far less hard costs associated with it than traditional media, but you will have to devote human capital to it – yours, a trusted employees or (preferably) both. If you are willing to invest, your returns will be rewards.
FIVE – How will you build the relationship? Your Facebook “Fans” are fans of varying degrees, one of your main objectives should be to turn them into customers, then loyal customers and then raving fans and then brand evangelists.
You can tell your story in such a compelling way that people will be inspired to join you, buy from you and then tell their friends about what you do and why they should buy it.
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The entire premise of Social Media is built around the phrase “Hey – Check this out” the more people that say that about you and your page, the more fun you will have, the more connections you will make.
Remember – Social Media is about meeting people and giving them good content, sharing things that are interesting and valuable – it’s not broadcasting and it’s not a soap box for you to brag about how great you are. Find stuff, share stuff, build a community around your company, appreciate your community, make special offers to them, acknowledge them and get ready to grow.
Facebook is a powerful marketing tool and we have only scratched the surface here, I hope I have given you enough value and enough inspiration to make your business a Facebook Business Page – or make it better.
There are many great resources out there for you – sometimes it can seem overwhelming. I recommend four to get started:
Mari Smith is widely regarded as THE Facebook expert – great content of huge value delivered in a fun and engaging way with a delightful Scottish accent. She literally wrote the book – called – “Facebook marketing – in an hour a day” and her latest book, the Relationship Age. You’ll find her, of course, on Facebook.
Mike Stelzner and his team at SocialMediaExaminer.com – they put out an amazing daily newsletter and do some great web based conferences.
Guy Kawasaki’s website, AllTop.com is a tremendous resource for finding great content – other peoples content, or OPC to share with your Fans.
MarketingProfs.com has many resources and so much knowledge available for free and I gladly pay the annual ProMember fee – it’s so worth it.
Of course, we have plenty more to share with you and would love to connect – you’ll find us on Facebook at our fan page, just type “Social Jumpstart” into the search bar – and of course, you’ll find us online at SocialJumpstart.com –
Mike Wolpert / Social Jumpstart
