Have a limited marketing budget? Activities that would cost hundreds or thousands of dollars on other mediums can be done for a fraction of the cost online. One cost effective way is with a Facebook page.
Before you even determine the information of your marketing message, you have to understand that it will be seen by consumers and clients. That means knowing where they will hang out online
Facebook is where people are, with over 1.3 billion active users. And on any given day, 48% of them log on. You can target your desired demographic in that enormous audience by creating a Facebook Page, so let’s look at some ways to use a Facebook Page to market your business.
- Create a business page. That is your starting point, so don’t put it off. It is quick, easy and free. You can have a Facebook page for your business up and running in less than an hour, and you can change it as frequently as you wish.
- Add a cover and a profile picture. Some graphic representation of your business (a photo or your logo, for instance) will create brand awareness for that image. People that have visited your Facebook Page will have a connection with all of the information they have received there whenever they see that it. Mix it up, change it, and test all the time.
- Add a “Call to Action.” On the Cover area of your page, set up a call to action. Use it. Also use Call to Action buttons or links in your posts and in ads you create. Responses to a Call to Action build your fan base and create alternative ways to market to those fans.
- Add a short and description of your business. This is the first place visitors will see information about the nature of your business. You have two places for descriptions – a short one (155 characters) and a long one. Use both. Talk about your history, products and services, staff, or any aspect of your business that will attract users and create interest in what you do.
- Add contact information to encourage clients to find you. Add your address, telephone number and website URL to your page. Some businesses will use a Facebook Page instead of a website. If you have a website, though, a leading function of the Facebook Page will be to drive traffic to it back to your site.
- Post on your personal Facebook Profile and get your friends to like your Facebook Page. Ask them to Like your Facebook Page. (Another Call to Action!) but DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT spam other business pages, with, Hi, just dropping by a new liker here. I hate that, so much (and it’s a quick way to get your blocked from pages).
- Through your Page, connect with Facebook Groups that have the interests that you expect your customers will have. There is no better way to increase your business’ exposure quickly.
- Start posting and do it often. You increase the chances of any given Facebook fan seeing your post in their news feeds when you post at least two or three times per day. Experiment with days and times. Your target audience will have a ‘peak’ time of being online, you need to find when that is (eg don’t post between 5-7pm if you’re targeting parents of young kids – they’re likely trying to feed, bath and put kids to bed).
- Do not post only ads on your page or self promote Your main reason for creating the page is to increase your business, but an advantage of Facebook over most marketing tools is the ability to build a relationship with prospects. Give them reasons to like you. Give them entertaining and informative posts, as well as ads. I always follow the 80/20 rule.
- Allow others to post to your Page. This provides an opportunity for two-way communication with prospects – another step in building a relationship rather than merely dispensing ads. There are options available to provide monitoring so you can protect your page from inappropriate language, for example. In saying that, I do not allow others to post to my WAHM page, I have my reasons (most of them being too much spam in the work at home space), but that may be a new blog post.
- Use Facebook ads. These are actually a very cost effective way of getting your brand out there. You can choose the demographic you want to market to and how much you want to spend per day/week/month.
Start with your Facebook Page to grow brand awareness and respect from visitors to your Page. This one tool can start an exponential growth spurt.
