An Introduction to Facebook
This guide is designed to act as a brief introduction to Facebook for business owners.
Introduction
It’s likely that we all know what Facebook is, but only if you have owned a business would you be aware of the true benefits associated with the world’s favourite social network.
In this guide we will explain how Facebook could benefit your business.
Facebook Business Pages
A Facebook business page is a dedicated area for your business to promote, engage and sell to potential customers. Unlike a standard user profile given to anyone that signs up to Facebook, a business page offers statistics, insights and reports that will enable you to promote your business effectively on social media and understand what people do and do not like when you post.
It is these insights and the sheer scale of Facebook, which makes it one of, if not the best free social marketing tool in the world.
How to Use Facebook as a Business
Most businesses use Facebook incorrectly. The majority of businesses understand how to use Facebook on a personal level but cease to learn how to use the platform on a business level.
Facebook should be viewed as a marketing platform to attract ‘qualified’ customers and ‘drive traffic’ to your website. Alternatively if your main goal is brand awareness then your approach to Facebook would once again be rather different.
Owning a Facebook Business Page
There must be consideration into how you go about utilising Facebook for business promotion, however you should have no hesitation when it comes to actually signing up to create a Facebook page.
The creators of Facebook enable businesses to create a dedicated business page to sell and promote your services for free!
Let’s put this into context, you can promote and sell your products or services to millions, upon millions of customer each and every day at no cost to your business. Not only does this hold great potential for sale but you also have the opportunity to engage your audience 24 hours a day 7 hours each week. In summary, nearly all businesses should use Facebook, how you use it is down to you.
Time
The other key aspect as to why most businesses are unsuccessful on Facebook is due to the lack of dedication and time management. Facebook is not going to do all of your marketing for you. It supplies you with millions of prospects and means of communication but it is down to you to use it.
Get into a habit of preparing your social media communications at least a month in advance, we will go further into the strategy of Facebook marketing in a more advanced guide, but it is essential that your customers follow a process before being asked to take action. Snippets of information go a long way when it comes to social selling.
Facebook Requires a Strategy
There will be more businesses looking to generate leads or sales through Facebook than there will be wishing to increase general awareness, so we will focus on generating customers first.
If you are using Facebook to generate leads or sales then you need to understand your customers. Depending on whether you are selling B2B or B2C will also alter how you market your business and the process you use.
B2C Sales
B2C businesses can generate a substantial number of sales through Facebook, especially if your products are priced under £100.
Through our experience, we have found that a large proportion of customers are willing to spend up to £99 without the need to conduct research or consult a partner or friend before making a purchase. If you sell products valued under £99 it’s reasonable to ask for the sale through Facebook and to expect a number of bites.
As with all marketing, images are powerful and Facebook enables you to upload images to the platform. This is a great way to entice and convert visitors into sales. But avoid sharing poor quality images as this could also hinder your brand presence.
Whilst asking for a sale on Facebook is acceptable, it is paramount that this is not the focal point of your marketing. Remember that people are on Facebook to talk and chat, not to be sold to, so only use selling as part of your marketing strategy. Engaging your audience with free samples, reports, guides, videos, images and conversation will see your audience count soar. People buy only after they feel comfortable conducting a transaction; people need to know what your business is about and decide whether they like your brand before they make a purchase, so be patient, the sales will come!
B2B Sales
B2B selling is rather different to B2C selling. Whilst it is acceptable to offer instant sales opportunities on Facebook within a B2C environment, this is certainly not the case with B2B. In very few instances have I seen B2B businesses successfully sell directly through Facebook. In very few instances have I seen B2B businesses successfully sell directly through Facebook. This approach must focus on brand awareness and offering things for free, such as guides. Your strategy should focus on obtaining contact information such as telephone and email details in return for information as these are areas that you can sell to your prospects.
Offering things for free is a great way to attract qualified prospects to your brand. Furthermore, people accept a follow up as this would be logical due to the download of your guide.
Conclusion
On the whole Facebook requires a strategy; you can’t just expect things to happen. Your approach needs to clear, your goals identified and your communications need to be consistent with clear call to actions (CTA’s)