Building a community for your business with facebook

Building a community for your business with FacebookHow small businesses can generate an active fan base, and PR machine -- in just a few hours a week -- on the world's largest social network.

Katherine RazCommunity Manager, Signalhq.com @katherine_raz

Your first steps

Creating your Facebook page

● To start a page visit: https://www.facebook.com/pages/create/● Takes 5-10 minutes to set up● Set up a personal Facebook account if you don't have one already --

Facebook "business only" profiles have limitations

■ No feed, inability to "like" other pages as your page, etc.● All the initial information you enter, including profile photo, is

editable later

● Remember to "like" your page as yourself when you're finished and/or invite friends to like your page

● Admins can manage the Facebook page - you can create more than one

Your Facebook cover image & profile picture

● Your profile picture and cover image define your brand in Facebook● Your profile picture appears on all content outside your page -- make

sure it's branded!

● Use images that are descriptive and contain your logo, or an image that's representative of your brand/business

● Cover photos may not include images with more than 20% text

Your Facebook page username & vanity URL

● Once you have 25 Facebook fans, be sure to claim your vanity URL● Visit: http://www.facebook.com/username

Getting fans

Where to publicize your Facebook page

● On your website● On your business cards● In your Etsy shop● Signage on your brick-and-

mortar shop (include the exact URL or use a QR code)

● On your company vehicles● On menus● On trade show signage● On packaging and shopping bags● In mail orders● In your email newsletter● In your Twitter bio

Strategies for getting your first 100 likes

● Fan your page yourself, and invite friends to fan it● "Like" related businesses as your Facebook page (Settings > "Use

Facebook as") to create a content feed for your page

● Like content on other Facebook pages as your Facebook page● Post shareable content -- content that motivates fans to share or "like"

(this is easier for some businesses than others, but think creatively)

● Remember: photos tend to be shared more than links● Post your events on Facebook and invite friends & fans● Use Facebook Insights (found in the Admin panel on your Facebook page)

to determine which "like" sources are working for you

● Post photos of events and ask people to tag themselves in them

What to post?

What to share on Facebook / PHOTOS

What to share on Facebook / EVENTS

What to share on Facebook / LINKS

What to share on Facebook / QUOTES & GRAPHICS

Dealing with customers

Handling customer feedback on Facebook

● Stay calm, don't post reactionary comments

● Don't remove customer comments unless they are purposely inflammatory

● Address the issue and, as soon as possible, give the customer another method to contact you, like email

● Remember: most customer interactions on Facebook will be positive!

Advanced tips & tricks

Facebook check-ins

● Create your business profile as a Local Business or Place (at setup)● Include your business address in your profile

Facebook tabs

● Tabs add functionality to your Facebook page● Use them to: link other social accounts, link to your shop, provide a

history of your business, embed an email signup form, and run contests and sweepstakes

● It's easy to create custom tab images● Use a tab management application like Signalhq.com or Wildfireapp

Your business information

● Fully fill out your business profile with useful information (where do I make a reservation? how do I order? what's the next event date?)

● Add a call to action in the visible "About Us" section

Scheduling content

● "Batch task" and schedule content in advance● You can edit or delete scheduled content later if needed● Third-party apps like Hootsuite and Signalhq can help you organize

Facebook content for later delivery

What's the deal with Edgerank?

● Edgerank is Facebook's news feed algorithm. It determines which content shows up in whose feed.

● 96% of fans won't revisit your page after initial engagement -- they'll get their content from you in their newsfeed.

● In order of ranking, content that shows up in the news feed, as weighed by Edgerank: photos, links, plain-text updates (unless your plain-text updates get a TON of feedback)

How do you deal?● Post short, frequent updates -- and images are the best content.● Ask for engagement to increase likes and shares (but don't be lame), or

post stuff you know will get attention

● Keep track of your engagement stats (at the bottom of each post)● Post at different times of the day to gauge which time is most effective

How deep is your engagement?

Growing your audience

How do I get more fans? And more likes?

● Post daily, scheduling content in advance if needed● Post more photos -- experiment with posting links and events as photos● Post any events to Facebook and invite friends and fans● Ask people to share content● Include links to your social accounts elsewhere on the web and on your

marketing materials

Super-smart tactics that don't cost a thing● Post "fill in the blank" posts or "like if you..." images● Ask people to tag themselves in photos of your business, or tag them

yourself if you don't think they'll mind

● Set aside 15 minutes each day to engage with other brands on Facebook, "like" content as your page, and continue liking more pages as your page -- don't forget about associations & organizations!

● Use @Businessname to refer to your business and other businesses● Write a daily text-only shop update similar to something you'd Tweet● Create albums of photos for events, new products, etc.

Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

Further reading

Recommended Facebook resources

Thanks.

Questions? Feedback?Want to share your own PR successes?

Contact me anytime.

Katherine [email protected] @katherine_raz