How To Market A Business Using Facebook

Do you know how to market a business using Facebook? It, of course, is a social network, was started in February 2005, and began in a Harvard dormitory room. It has since rocketed to be the second-most visited web site in the world (as of early 2011)! If you are not "on Facebook" (registered as a Facebook user), you are completely out of the loop. This social networking site has speedily transformed from an internet-based hangout spot for teenagers and college students to a highly useful marketing tool for companies of all kinds. It would be foolish, in fact, not to aim to monetize this amount of traffic to build business awareness. And Facebook encourages this. All you have to do is apply a few simple rules.

How To Market A Business Using Facebook

For starters, you will require the following "items": a computer with a web connection and a Facebook account. Yep, that's it! When a Facebook account is initially created, a user may create a personal profile page, add other Facebook users as friends and exchange messages, including automatic notifications when they update their profile. I also recommend creating a "username" for your account. There are many good reasons for this but the major one is that it permits you to create an easy-to-remember Facebook web address. Log in to your Facebook account, open a new web browser tab or window, and go to facebook.com/username, and follow the directions. By the way, your Facebook profile page is NOT a suitable area to market a business.

Other than a personal profile page, Facebook has two main page concepts that are much more appropriate places to market a business: fan pages and group pages (or groups). A fan page is basically a profile page especially made to be used to market a business. Of course, it can be used for a whole host of other purposes as well. Just like a personal profile page, it allows people to connect with new, existing, and even potential customers while doing one of the most vital things a business can do - building and maintaining customer relationships.

Group pages differ from fan pages in Facebook in that they are more suited for creating awareness about brands. If you're looking to get viral about your business, Facebook group pages are a super forum for hosting discussions as well as communicating messages, distributing event invitations, etc to the (group) masses.

If you are having problems choosing whether fan pages or group pages will be most appropriate for you, consider Facebook fan pages to be great for long-term relationship-building and Facebook group pages to be best for short-term buzz-building. Ideally, you will have both.

And did I mention that both are absolutely no-cost to create? Here's how:

Creating A Facebook Fan Page That Works

Identify your type of business. Is it a local business? What is/are your brand/products/organization? Are you an artist/band/public figure? Choose the proper business category and choose a business name. Note that, similar to a user's username, Facebook does NOT allow you edit the chosen business name. Make it easy to remember because you will likely use this web address (facebook.com/YourBusinessName) to market a business on web sites outside of Facebook, linking back to this page.
Fill out the basic company info, detailed info, and contact information. Making sure to fully complete these three sections will not only fill out your page, but customers will get more of a familiarity with what you offer and how to contact you outside of Facebook.
Post company logos and pictures. No one wants to simply read a bunch of text any longer. If you are going to market a business on Facebook, your customers - or potential customers - who become fans will wish to have a first peek at new and exciting products. You can even upload movies that further illustrate your brand, products, and services and/or why a prospective customer should partner with you!
Update content and communicate with fans regularly. If suitable, it may be a good idea to hire someone as manager for your Facebook fan page; someone who can respond to questions and comments left on your fan page wall. This is also a great way to let customers know there are actual people working at your company who appreciate their patronage.

How To Create A Facebook Group In Less Than 5 Minutes

Sign in to your Facebook account and find the "create a group" link which is situated in the left column of your personal profile page.
Fill in the group name and description. Do not leave the description section blank - it can be one sentence in length. The name should explain everything about your new group, but, in order to leave no room for confusion, add words that answers the questions, "what is this group about" and "why has this group been created".
Broadcast photos and videos pertaining to the group niche.
Choose group officers. The cool part about this is that you can create any position name you want!
Edit group data and remember to keep it up-to-date.
Add members. This phase can be done immediately, later, and/or ongoing. You can add individuals from your Facebook friends list, or non-friends by simply entering their email addresses. NOTE: Facebook allows you to import contacts from Yahoo, Hotmail, Gmail, or even AOL address books.
Start a discussion. Make it fascinating. Asking a general question is a good start to getting the ball rolling.

If you're going to market a business on Facebook, you will certainly have access to a mother lode of eyes. Once you have set yourself up as detailed previously, you should take it to the next level and monetize Facebook with a solid marketing strategy. Finally, Facebook gets a huge amount of traffic but - and keep this in mind - there are different social networks out there that some people might prefer. Given this, find other social marketing strategies that will help you market a business and get it known quickly!

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