Social networking site, Facebook was originally launched in 2004 as a site to connect college students. It has grown and evolved in its short history to include over 400 million active users. (50% of Facebook’s active users log in at least once a day and have an average of 130 friends.) Facebook is the number 2 visited site on the internet currently, second to Google. Facebook is quickly becoming the tool of choice to connect with friends and colleagues online.
More important from a business perspective, Facebook has evolved into a powerful marketing tool. Facebook utilizes a variety of tools (or applications) that allow a business owner to keep audiences informed as to what’s happening. Use it to communicate things like special events, seasonal promotions and new product launches etc.
So here are 10 tips to get your business started on Facebook:
Get started – join Facebook and set up your personal Profile (this must be in your name and not the business). Profiles are for people, pages are for businesses. We’ll get into this later.
Invite friends – Invite everyone in your contact list to become friends on Facebook. You’ll be surprised how many are already on Facebook. While you can never have too many Facebook Friends, think carefully before accepting Friend requests from people you’ve never heard of.
It is all about Relationships – not selling! Start communicating with people on Facebook. Join Facebook Groups that are relevant to your business and your prospects, and contribute in the discussion areas. Comment on items your Friends may post. Write on The Wall of new Friends.
Now to Business – create a Facebook Page for your company. Make it personal – present the human face of your business. And don’t forget to link to your company website and blog.
Promote it – tell everyone about your Facebook Page. Put a link on your website, email all contacts, you could even advertise it on Facebook! Encourage people to become Fans of your Page.
Update, update, update – when a personal Profile or business Page is updated, all the Friends (or Fans) know. So if you have any relevant news, events, activities, whether major or minor, post it on Facebook. And keep doing it!
Learn and Improve – look at other Facebook Profiles and Pages; what could you do to make yours more interesting to your Friends? Seek advice; ask other people how they use Facebook and similar Social Networks.
Add Applications – there are thousands of Facebook Applications that can be added to your Profile or Page to help both you and your visitors, including powerful business tools such as Voice Mail, Video, Slideshare, Introduction and Networking tools.
Think Ahead – By now you should be building and interacting with an active community on Facebook, relevant and interested in you and your business. Start planning how you can continue to improve that community by engaging with it and contributing to it.
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If your business could use a little advice or ongoing support with understanding the power of Facebook, give us a call for a free consultation.
(This post is adapted from a Facebook for Business article contributed to the Best Of Chester newsletter)
