Boasting over 1.23 billion monthly users and counting, Facebook is the world’s most popular social media network (source). While some people assume it’s only useful for personal purposes, Facebook is also a powerful tool for business branding and marketing. If you’re looking to leverage its power, keep reading for some helpful tips and tricks.
Don’t Use Your Personal Page
One all-too-common social media mistake business owners make is using their personal Facebook page instead of a dedicated business page. Why is this a problem? For starters, visitors won’t have the option to “like” your page. You can befriend another user on Facebook, but you can’t follow his or her page. Business pages, on the other hand, allow the use of “likes,” as well as the display of pertinent information related to your business (e.g. website URL, phone number, hours of operation and address).
To create a business page on Facebook, visit https://www.facebook.com/business, click the “Create Page” button in the top-right corner, and follow the instructions. It’s completely free and should only take a couple of minutes.
Post Images, Lots of Them
The human brain is hard-wired to respond better to images than text, so try to get into the habit of publishing photos to your Facebook page on a regular basis. If you’re still skeptical of the power of images, here’s an interesting study that may change your mind: eMarketer found photos to be the most engaging type of content on Facebook, receiving an 87% interaction rate among viewers. “Links” came in a distant second with just a 4% interaction rate.
Stay Active
You can’t expect to follow your Facebook page unless you actively publish new content. Far too many people set up their Facebook page and make a few initial posts, only to neglect it afterwards. But without content, there’s no reason or incentive for users to visit your page.
So, how often should you publish new content? There’s really no magic number, but a good rule of thumb (for most niches) is to create a new post at least once per week. This will ensure your page is fresh and relevant, which should subsequently encourage visitors to return.
Limit Promotional Messages
There’s nothing wrong with sprinkling some promotional/advertorial content into your Facebook page, but you should do so sparingly. Publishing sales pitch after sales pitch may send some of your visitors heading in the opposite direction. You must achieve a delicate balance between engaging content and promotional content.
