With our upcoming free class on “Social Media: How to Build Your Own Facebook Fan Page with Custom Tabs” in Euless/Ft Worth, TX, on Tuesday, September 28, 2010, I have been blogging on Facebook Fan Page tips. In my previous post, I started a list on “25 Tips for a Great Facebook Fan Page Part 1,” and today I conclude that post.
13) When You have More than 25 Fans, Go get your Facebook URL. Facebook is now the third- or fourth-most searched site (depending on who you read), and it is imperative that potential customers and clients find you at www.facebook.com/YourCoolBusiness, not the default long-as-your-elbow link Facebook assigns you.
14) Promote Your Business Fan Page on Your Personal Facebook Account. I know this should be a given, but so many people don’t do this. If you have a personal Facebook account, why not tell your existing 200-500 friends to go “Like” your business? Unless your are selling drugs, perform IRS audits, or selling budget funeral caskets, tell your friends! (By the way, Fan Pages work for those businesses as well, just not as effectively. They need a lot of tip #24 — see below.)
15) Ask Your Employees or Staff to Promote Your Business Fan Page on Their Social Media. Have you heard about the Six-Degrees of Separation theory? Your employees have more influence through their own connections than perhaps anything you ever imagined. The cleaning people know people you can’t reach who probably need your services. Encourage them to promote you.
16) Once You Have Your URL, Release a Press Release About Your Business Fan Page to Tell the World. Do you send out emails to your previous clients? Tell them about your Facebook Fan Page. Do you send out monthly newsletters or updates? Tell them about your Facebook Fan Page. Do you send out press releases? Tell them about your Facebook Fan Page. Treat your Facebook Fan Page as big news. Done right, it really is.
17) Cross-Link Your Other Social Media Markets to Point to Your Facebook Fan Page. If I find you on LinkedIn, does it promote your Facebook Fan Page? If I find your business on YouTube, does it promote your Facebook Fan Page? If I stumble upon your blog, does it promote your Facebook Fan Page?
18) Empower “Other” Employees to Provide Content and Prospective. The marketing department or the business owner should not be on the only one provide content for your Fan Page. Let’s hear from other non-sales departments, admins and installers. You’ll be surprised at the variety, connectivity, and transparency it brings to your page.
18) Delete Stuff Your Page Isn’t Using. If your Fan Page is not using the “Discussion” tab, remove it. (Don’t worry you can bring it back later.) If you’re not using the “Photo” tab, turn it off.
19) Respond Timely to All Comments. Your Fan Page is a two-way street of communication. Don’t let the littlest “Hi” go unnoticed. Take even criticism as an opportunity to publically address any and all issues.
20) Put Your Facebook Fan Page on All Your Company’s Printed Material. Don’t treat your Facebook social media as second-class mail. Proudly displace the logo and link on all your printed material, business cards, and snail mail marketing campaigns.
21) Add Widgets or “Like” Bars to Your Website and Blogs. Try the Wibiya Toolbar (that’s the red one on the bottom of this blog, a free version) that floats near the bottom of your browser and encourages visitors to “Like” your page. What they are really doing is “Liking” your Facebook Fan Page. This one tip can dramatically add fans or followers.
22) Implement the “Like” Feature Directly from Facebook. While I like the Wibiya Toolbar slightly better (see above), Facebook has its own social plugins or widgets you can implement. You can learn tons more about it here: Facebook Developers site.
23) Pay Facebook to Market Your Fan Page with an Ad. I have never been a fan of paying for any of the “per-clicks” to market your business products online or using the Facebook Ads for product marketing. However, when you understand the absolute stickiness of connecting your customers to Facebook personal News/Wall, the simplicity of just asking to “Become a Fan,” and consider the low cost of a specific ad, it’s worth considering. Compared to the cost of any other form of marketing campaigns, I have found this to be money well spent. Find more information here: Facebook FAQ on Ads. My advice is keep your budget low and monitor the results. Try $3-$10 a day.
24) 10% of the Time Post Something Funny about You or Your Business to the Wall. You will remember in Tip #2 I advised to stay on topic 90% of the time. The other 10% should be genuinely funny, personal, or lighthearted and have nothing to do with your business. As with all your online material, you don’t have to be serious all the time, but do keep it in perspective.
25) Ask People to “Like” Your Fan Page. Ask, ask, ask. Don’t forget to ask. Speaking of ask, here’s a great Fan Page you should like: FunCitySocialMedia Fan Page. Or you can click “Like” on the Wibiya bar on the bottom.
What would you add? What other tips are missing from this list?
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