By now you know you need to be getting the most out of your online presence and social media outlets, and the easiest way to do so is to tackle one social media outlet at a time. So this week on The Branding Spot, we’re talking about how you can effectively use Facebook to promote your business.
Judging a Business by its (Facebook) Cover
The professional image you choose to project out into the world is always open to judgment, whether good or bad. So it’s important to always put your best foot forward, and Facebook is no exception. When a new potential customer visits the Facebook page for your business, the very first point of contact is when they look at your Facebook cover and your profile picture.
- Make an Impression. Choose a memorable, interesting, and helpful Facebook cover photo to immediately evoke a positive feeling. This is the best way to make the immediate impression that your business is helpful and approachable.
- Show Your Personality. Don’t be afraid to let your photos showcase what you and your business are really about. People want to do business with real people. The better your page’s visitors can relate to you, the more they’ll want to do business with you.
- Change is Good. Changing your Facebook cover image frequently provides your visitors with a good reason to connect with you more often. Without frequent picture updates and changes, people will likely tune you out. A new cover or profile picture inspires people to react and to comment, opening up the opportunity for conversation. Good and frequent conversation keeps your business and your products and/or services at the forefront in the mind of your readers.
- Get Them to Want More. An appealing cover and profile picture drive potential customers to check out your additional content.
- Be Liked. Unappealing pictures are the quickest way to lose a Like!
(Great) Content is Key
Providing your Facebook readership with great, thoughtful, and relevant content is the best way to keep that target audience engaged with your business and more likely to purchase. Buddy Media recently published a survey indicating that social media engagement is 18% higher on Thursdays and Fridays. So that means many people are searching for products, services, and things to do (especially at 7am, 5pm, and 11pm) on Thursdays and Fridays.
- Good Timing. Post your best ideas and offers at peak times for better results.
- Get Emotional. A great brand evokes emotion in the target audience of a business. Your potential and current clientele need to see something they view as instantaneously beneficial. Use color, photography, humor, and educational articles to strike an emotional chord. And feel free to mix it up! Once you get that initial visual connection, your target market is more likely to get engaged in that content.
- It’s Not All About You. Ok, really – stop talking about your company and how you’re so great. Social media is about positioning yourself as an expert in your industry via engaging, informative, and relatable content. So enough with the boasting. Your clients aren’t interested.
- Be Valuable. Instead, listen to your target market. What is their number one problem? Instead of telling Facebook how great you are, offer a real solution to your target audience’s biggest problem. They will respond to you, and they’ll love you for it!
- Share Information. Post more educational videos, quotes, and articles. We’re living in the information age and there is so much out there to learn and share. Your target audience wants to know that you’re reading about, learning about, following, and doing amazing things in your industry. Keep your fans coming back and interacting with your business by providing consistent interesting content.
- Watch Your Words. Use “call to action” words such as: Like, Submit, Post, and Tell Us. Your readers will be more engaged when they’re instructed to act NOW. Try to avoid phrases like become a fan or visit us. These are not “take action now” words. Also, keep it brief. Social media caters to and encourages short attention spans.
While Facebook often looks like a popularity contest, keep in mind that a smaller, engaged, and dedicated following of Likers is better than a larger number of passive, semi-interested followers who aren’t exactly your ideal target market anyway. Quantity doesn’t care about you, but quality invests in you and your business.
So show those quality potential or current customers you’re in the know. Follow these Facebook best business practices and you’ll see fast results for your brand and for your business!
Tell us some of your most popular Facebook posts/covers have been by commenting below.