An Introduction to Facebook for Business

With more than 400 million active users, 70% of which are outside America, Facebook is the biggest and most popular social networking site used today. This online network prides itself on a commendable company mission to make the world more open and connected. In doing so, Facebook empowers you to stay connected with your market at an impressive personal level. The correct use of this web 2.0 tool can greatly enhance your marketing strategy, boost your brand loyalty and foster a family of fans which voluntarily promote your business, for free!

Your customers are on Facebook
Notably the UK has the second largest Facebook following in the world. With over 23 million users, it’s highly likely that your market are avid Facebook users – so why aren’t you?

Although your company website plays a vital role in your online presence, it can seem impersonal for some users. Facebook on the other hand is not. By creating a Facebook identity you enhance your brand’s personality, appear much more approachable, and encourage engagement with your potential and existing customers. Because Facebook makes the task of staying connected really easy, it enables wide spread reach for your brand that may have previously seemed inconceivable. As wall and status commenting are public activities you aren’t simply developing your business for your fans to see – but for the friends of your fans too! This viral possibility of Facebook makes it a highly attractive online marketing tool for you to generate and sustain interest in your business.

Gaining fans is only half the battle. What businesses must do is promote ongoing engagement with their fans and in order to do this content is crucial. No one wants to receive constant updates about what you and your team have had for lunch or worse still, what you intend on having for dinner. What you must do is provide a stream of interesting content specific to your customers and perhaps related to what you do. If you effectively grasp user interest you should develop a healthy base of fans who will spread your carefully thought out marketing messages to their friends both on-line and off.

Tips for getting started
Give your profile some thought. Generally, the information you share on your profile is the first thing new fans will see. Think of it as your chance to get fans-to-be to click the all-important ‘Become A Fan’ button. Try not to scare people off with a crazy sales spiel, instead tell them about what interests you on a more personal level – that should do the trick!

Get a persona. Facebook thrives on conversations so try to deliver your messages personally, not as a corporate entity.

Join the conversation. Respond to your fans, get click-happy with the like button and shout your appreciation for new fans!

Have a daily dose. Updating your status once a day takes very little time and effort but may be just enough to help you guarantee a place in news streams.

Bin the spiel. Quickly accept that there’s little or no room for selling and move on to a more productive strategy.

Promote your blog. Blogs (when written correctly) are another means to add value to your brand. Promoting your blog as a means of information for your customers is not the same as driving users to your website. Tell fans about your latest posts and get them to tell you what they’d like to see
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Monitor your brand. There’s lots of helpful monitoring tools that will track what’s being said about you on Facebook. Use them to measure the success of your campaigns and to build a strong fan base.

Get back to basics. Use Facebook for exactly what is was intended for. Upload pic’s, post links to video’s and use the wide variety of widgets to enhance your page.

Want to know more?
Grab a coffee with us today to talk through how we can build a tailored Facebook strategy for your brand.