By figuring out how to monetize Facebook, you can easily make a first or even just additional sales. With the newer types of Fan Pages Facebook has to offer, you now have two ways to promote with them online, through your personal profile and these fan pages. The only difference is what you need to do with both types of pages and why.
Below is a breakdown explaining the two different types of pages along with what you should be doing with them:
Your Personal Facebook Profile: A good rule of thumb is to update your profile about once a day with either a link to a product from your online store or website. You can also share a press mention about your business. Or a link to a tweet from a fan, friend or family member. Another idea is you can post a survey or ask a question. Also, maybe about once a month share your “about us” or “story” webpage. The story about your business is a great form of social currency, so spend time crafting a good story. From time to time you might also want to paste in the text about your story from your website instead of just pasting the link. The reason for this is that more of the text will show up on your friend’s feed, thereby delivering more of the story right off the bat.Finally, remember to keep using your personal Facebook profile for what it’s meant for. Continue to share photos, news articles, liking people’s posts and being a normal user. Don’t switch over to “business only” mode. All you are going to do differently is occasionally posting something relevant about your new business.
Your Business' Facebook Page: Facebook Pages are designed for businesses, brands, and other types of organizations. Facebook only wants you to promote your business through your Facebook page. That’s why we stress that you should keep business promotion through your personal Facebook profile to a minimum. With Facebook Pages, only people who have Liked your Facebook page will see your updates. In a sense, these people have given you permission to advertise to them. This is a very key point about online marketing these days – permission marketing is much more effective than the old days of spamming everyone under the sun. The good news is that with a Facebook page, you're in good company, with over 70 perfect of B2C companies acquiring a customers through the social platform.
You will promote on your Facebook page exactly like how you do it on your Facebook profile with posts and links to products, PR mentions, and stories about your business. However, a better way to get deeper engagement on Facebook is to post updates on things that are not directly related to purchasing one of your products.
A great way to get more Facebook page engagement is to post:
- Industry trends and news
- Funny, cute, and high-quality photos (that you have a legal right to publish)
- Uplifting stories
- Inspirational Quotes
- Fun polls or surveys
Although some of these updates won’t have anything to do with your brand per se, they will bond a stronger relationship between your brand and those that have “Liked” your Facebook page. What you are doing here is strengthening your fan base, which generally pays dividends down the line.
Just make sure to keep the interactions high quality, regarding staying in communication with your friends, family, followers, clients and potential customers. You should gauge the amount of interaction that is most successful for your specific audience and craft and weekly or daily posting schedule from there.
What do you feel is the most successful way to harness the power of Facebook?
Image Source: Dimitris Kalogeropoylos on Flickr
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