Just about any modern business should consider connecting with customers through social media, especially when you consider that 1.3 million internet users become social media users per day. It’s the best way to get out there, develop a community of loyal customers, and connect with new prospects. Outside of marketing, social media is also an avenue for customer service, a great way to get customer feedback, and a tool for research and development.
If you’ve been neglecting Facebook, however, you’re missing out on a whole branch of these excellent opportunities. For one, Facebook sees over 1.8 billion visitors per day.
Fortunately, a Facebook page can lend you extra credibility and social proof. Best of all, setting up a business page on Facebook is easy and free. Here is what you should know:
How to Create a Facebook Business Page
Step One: Register
While logged into a personal Facebook account, click the “Create” button on the right-hand side of the blue bar, next to the “Home” button. A drop-down menu will appear, and the first option will have a flag symbol and read “Page.” Click the Page option. After that, two categories will appear: “Business or Brand” and “Community or Public Figure.” Pick the button that reads “Get Started” under the Business or Brand option.
Step Two: Enter Your Business’ Basic Information
Facebook will prompt you for a page name. You should use the same name as your business, though some may want to add something for clarification. For example, if you own a tech startup named “Lightbulb,” you might want to name your page “Lightbulb Tech” or “Lightbulb: Tech from Brilliant Ideas” so people don’t think you’re making a page about lightbulbs.
Underneath the space for your page’s name, there will be a space for you to select your category. This is another way to differentiate your page and make sure it shows up in searches. You should choose a category which best represents the product or service your business offers. Try to be specific. Instead of choosing “technology,” try “custom PCs” or “software engineering.”
Step Three: Add a Profile Picture and Cover Photo
Branding is important, so you need to choose a profile picture and cover photo to help you stand out. Try to have a unique profile picture ready to go; many businesses use their logo, but you may have to redesign it slightly to make it fit.
Next, you’ll want to upload a cover photo. Sometimes also called a “banner image” or simply a “banner,” the cover photo is an image that appears on the top of your Facebook page. You should pick something eye-catching, appealing, and representative of your business. Some companies use a high-quality picture of their storefront, or a well-designed graphic featuring their slogan. Either way, you should remember that the cover photo will be 400 x 150 pixels, and any image bigger than that will crop to fit.
Step Four: Add Additional Business Info
On the left side of your page, in the sidebar beneath your profile picture, click where it says “About.” Here, you can—and should—fill out all pertinent info about your business. This includes your operating hours, your contact info, your website, and more. If you own a restaurant, you can add a menu. If you sell products, you can add those products to your page.
It’s quite possible that your Facebook page will be the first time a customer sees you, so it’s important to fill out as much information about your business as possible.
Step Five: Pick a Button
Facebook has a free feature where you can add a button to the top-right corner of your page, underneath your cover photo. This button allows people to quickly perform an action. Depending on what you chose, this button can allow people to book an appointment with you, contact you, learn more about your business, shop your products, or download your software.
To select your button, look at the top-right section of your page, underneath your cover photo (where the button will be once you activate it), and click “Add a Button.” After that, you can select which action you want your button to perform. Make sure to pick something that makes sense. For example, it’s logical to select “Book Now” if you own a hair salon, tattoo parlor, or dog groomer, but maybe not if you’re an app developer.
Once you select your button, you’ll want to attach a link to it. Make sure your link sends people to a webpage or download link that matches with your button. For example, if you picked “Book Now” you’ll want to add a link to the part of your website where people can make appointments. You might want to consider adding a UTM to track how many people access the page through your Facebook page.
Step Six: Invite People to Like Your Page & Be Active
Facebook will prompt you to invite Facebook friends to like your new business page. Take advantage of this opportunity so you can get off to a good start.
Once you’ve done that, start marketing yourself by being active. Start planning regular posts for your page, and join groups relevant to your product. If you’re a small business, you might want to like the pages of other local businesses you aren’t competing with. Not only will this encourage them to give you a reciprocal like, but it’s also an opportunity to network within your community.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
While creating a Facebook page for your business may seem like a straightforward process, there’s a surprising number of pitfalls you may stumble into. Some of the most common include…
- Using a profile or group instead of a page. On Facebook, there’s a clear distinction between a profile, a group, and a page. Pages are the clearly superior option when it comes to marketing your business. Profiles and groups don’t have any analytics tools, and don’t have the ability to develop organic reach the way pages do. Moreover, anything you post to your profile is only visible to people who’ve friended you, making it harder to expand your audience. You’re also likely to lose control of the topic in a group, since all group members have equal say in the discussion. Using a profile to market your business also risks violating Facebook’s terms of service, so they could delete your profile.
- Not creating a detailed profile. Since people spend relatively small amounts of time on a web page, they’ve become very well-practiced at getting a decent impression of the information they contain in a matter of seconds. This includes Facebook pages. You want to have a lot of details so visitors can find all the information they need right away.
- Using low-quality images. Not only do all the images need to be consistent with your branding, but you also don’t want to use blurry or out-of-date pictures. Failing in this will not only misrepresent your business, but it will also give your page an amateurish, unprofessional feel.
- Messing up the tone. The ultimate goal of social media marketing is to form a connection with your customer base. To that end, tone is extremely important. If your page comes off as unapproachable, or it seems more like a complicated ad than a piece of social media, then people won’t want to interact with your page. In other words: you don’t want to be too pushy. You want to find your company’s voice, whether that be bubbly, sassy, serious, or et cetera. However, you don’t want to sell too little, either. Ultimately, you want your business to come across as an approachable and entertaining personality.
How and Why to Add Photos & Create Albums
One important aspect of social media is sharing, especially sharing photos. Let’s take a look at how to upload photos and create albums, and what sorts of photos you should upload.
How to Upload Photos
- Underneath the “Create Post” template, click on the photo/video button. You can upload several images from your device.
- A separate window will open to show you the image(s) you uploaded. You can edit the ones in the post, write some words to accompany the image, or add more photos.
- Click “Post” when you’re ready to add the images to your page. These images will appear on your page, and you’ll also be able to access them from your page’s gallery.
How to Create Albums
- Click on the “Share a Photo or Video” button near the top of your page.
- Select “Create a Photo Album.”
- A separate window will appear, prompting you to upload photos from your computer. Select the photos you want, then click “Open.”
- While the images are uploading, you can give your album a title using the text bar in the upper-left corner. You can also add an album description directly below that.
- Once the images are done uploading you can add text to them, or rearrange the photos by clicking and dragging them.
- You can also pick a specific date and location to attach to the album if all the photos are from a specific event.
Why You Need Photos & Albums
As mentioned above, you want to use photos that represent your brand image. While your photos should always be professional, don’t be afraid to share casual and personal images. In addition to photos of your products and/or services, you could post pictures of team-building exercises or interactions with the local community. This will help familiarize your audience with your business in addition to fostering a sense of approachability and loyalty.
Moreover, photos can be shared. You’ll want to post extremely sharable photos so people who like your products or find your content amusing will spread the word. If you frequently and regularly post new photos, you’re more likely to get seen and shared.
Albums serve an extremely pragmatic purpose in that regard: they organize all the photos you’ve uploaded for ease of access. If someone comes to your Facebook page looking for something specific, they won’t want to sift through your entire gallery to find the image they need. If you have albums for all your products, services, events, et cetera, then people will have an easier time locating them.
Why You Need a Business Page on Facebook
As we’ve already mentioned, Facebook business pages foster a sense of loyalty, community, and approachability among your customers. In today’s landscape—when people have more choices than they know what to do with—carving out a niche is critical. Below, we will explore some more specific reasons why creating a business page on Facebook is so essential:
Facebook Offers a Wide Reach
Facebook pages extend your reach any time someone likes or shares a post. When they do so, all their Facebook friends will see your content. On top of that, you’ll also gain access to Facebook Ads—a paid service where Facebook will share advertisements that look like posts. These ads will provide your audience with information like where to find your store or website, make an appointment, or download your app. According to one survey, the average Facebook user will click on 12 ads per month. You can also use this service to track how many clicks these ads are getting.
In sum: Facebook has the audience. Now it is your turn to grab that audience’s attention.
Facebook is Seen As Reputable
Since it’s such a widely-used social media network, Facebook is often one of the first places people go to get information about a business. In fact, it’s not uncommon that a business’s Facebook page will show up in search results before their website.
What’s more, your competitors are likely already there. A staggering 80% of businesses find Facebook to be the ideal platform for video marketing, for example.
Facebook Allows You to Connect Personally With Audience
Additionally, the ability to interact with your customers also provides excellent avenues for market research and customer service. If a customer with a problem feels like they can come directly to you for assistance, then they’re going to have an overall more positive opinion of their experience. Facebook also provides the opportunity for people to explicitly tell you what they’d like to see from your company and what they think of your products or services.
Once you’ve set up your Facebook page and started regularly posting and responding to comments, you’re likely to see an uptick in business. Remember: you’ll want to interact with your audience and curate your persona in order to generate attention and cultivate brand loyalty.
Ready to make the most out of your social media presence, especially on a platform as influential as Facebook? Reach out, and I will help you get started!
