The difference between a Facebook Profile, Fan Page and Group
Facebook Profile: Turning it into a personal business profile.
A Facebook profile for a business is a way to fuel your Facebook Fan Page with the “Suggest To Friends” tool which is located underneath the profile picture of your Facebook Fan Page. I always see business owners that use their personal facebook profile as their business profile. This is not what you want to do. The reason for this is that you are not giving the consumer the option to “like” your business. This is extremely important because it has become an essential branding tool that is vital for businesses. Your personal facebook profile should strictly be about you. As a business owner you are giving your consumers the ability to get to know you as a person. For some business owners making the leap about sharing who you are personally, can be a difficult plunge. The way I look at it is this, if you don’t want to share with consumers, who you are, then why own a business?
Do’s and Don’ts
On a personal profile, you don’t want to advertise your business all the time. People come to facebook to connect with family and friends. People do look for businesses online and to find their “likes,” but the main purpose is to socialize with people they know. You can talk about your business, but keep it fun and educational. You don’t want to seem like you are trying hard to sell your “friends” on your business. That is what a facebook fan page is for.
Having a private profile. If you are a business, it can be a big turn off that your profile is on private. It is very uninviting for people when they are trying to find you. Maybe one of your consumers only remembers your name, but can’t find your business online.
No profile pic. That is creepy. Make sure to have a facebook profile picture. Also make sure to create photos albums with pictures about your life. You don’t have to share everything about your life. Pick and choose what information you think is comfortable for you to share with others. A good train of thought is to keep it lite and fun.
Be creative with your status updates, quotes, funny pictures, interesting information, videos, and educational articles are a great way to engage your facebook friends that could eventually convert into your consumers.
In the “Info” section of your facebook profile. Make sure to list a least couple paragraphs about yourself. People read it. Then talk about your business. Make sure to list your website. It is so important to list your website. Something people use your profile as a quick link to your website.
The “Tabs” at the top of your page is a great way for people to quick link to important info that you would like to share with them. By using the + button you can add all different types of tabs, like welcome pages, photos, videos, links, etc.
Facebook Fan Page
Where to find:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php
Create a Page This link is located on the sign in page of facebook.
Facebook Fan pages are one of the best ways to brand your business online. I think the move of changing from a “fan” to a “like” was a great idea. Think about some consumers may not want to be your fan, but really like your business. Talk as much about your business as you like. This is different than your profile. People and your eventual consumers are going to go to this page to see product, check out your latest events, and see any promotional things that you might be doing in-store. I still use the same philosophy with your facebook fan page as your personal profile. Don’t try and sell people. Make it fun and educational.
Why is a facebook fan page so important for your business?
Well eventually when you create a social community of “likes,” it will drive traffic to your website. Why is that so important? Well in the past most businesses had to spend a lot of money trying to advertise their new website. Now you have the ability to go to a social network with 350 million people and target market people. Your facebook fan page is like a mini version of your website with great interactive tools to engage your “likes.”
Here is a great article on how to optimize your Facebook Fan Page.
To see the entire article click here: http://mashable.com/2009/09/22/facebook-pages-guide/
HOW TO: Set Up a Winning Facebook Fan Page
Susan Payton is the Managing Partner of Egg Marketing & Public Relations, an Internet marketing firm specializing in blogger outreach, social media, and PR. She is also the blogger behind The Marketing Eggspert Blog.
With more than 300 million active users, Facebook is nearly the size of the United States in terms of population. In fact, odds are that you’re a Facebook user, perhaps using it to keep in touch with family and friends, with a dash of business thrown in for good measure. Maybe you look at some of the 2 billion photos uploaded each month, or contribute a few of the 40 million daily status updates. In short: Facebook is where it’s at, and you’re already there.
But what about your business? Does it use Facebook? If you’re a business owner, you really need to set up a Fan Page, or else you risk being left behind as more businesses shift to social networks like Facebook. This post is a beginner’s guide to setting up and getting the most out of a Page on Facebook for your business.
Facebook Pages 101
Facebook Pages are different than profiles. You have a profile for you, Jane Doe, but your businesscan’t have a profile — it can have a Page. A Page is a place to house all the pertinent information about your company. They’re so useful because you can include everything that relates to your business in one place with a built-in potential audience:
- Overview of company
- Website and contact info
- Press releases
- Videos
- Blog RSSupdates
- Company news and status
- Customer interaction
One of the major benefits of a Page on Facebook over (or in addition to) a webpage is that it’s so simple to update. With a website, if you’re not technical, you have to contact your web developer, who will then charge you to make even a tiny change. With Facebook, updates are as easy as logging in and typing or uploading. The fresher your content, the more you will engage people.
Setting Up Your Page
Once you’ve logged in to Facebook, scroll to the bottom and click on Advertising. Then click Pages andCreate a Page. Select the type of business you own and start filling in all the details. The more info you add, the better your page will be (and remember: Google thinks highly of Facebook in its search engine results).
Make sure to include your company logo, any RSS blog feeds that are relevant, videos, images — the whole nine yards. Once you’re satisfied with the Page, publish it, then get ready to dive into promotion.
Enhance Your Page with Apps
You can also enhance your Facebook Page by adding applications to it. Apps add particular functions to your page, such as drawing in your blog’s RSS feed (the Social RSS app is a good example of this) or YouTube videos. They are a great way to further engage visitors to your Page and provide them reason to come back, and there are hundreds of apps designed to help you do business better on Facebook.
Another option you have is to internally develop a new app. Pizza Hut’s Order App which allowed fans to order their pizzas directly through Facebook was a huge hit, for example. Red Bull has a custom application on its Page that pulls in Twitter updates from all of the athletes they sponsor. Developing a custom app for your Facebook Fan Page can be pricey, but if you can afford it or have in-house development talent that can get the job done, it can be very rewarding.
Promoting a Page
The tricky thing about Facebook Pages is that you can’t friend someone the way you can from your profile. People can elect to become fans of your Page, but only if they know about it. So you’ve got to spread the word organically (and keep doing it) to introduce people to your Page and to your company.
First identify contacts from your profile that are either business connections, people working in a field related to your business, or who would otherwise benefit from the information your company provides, and invite them to become a fan of the Page. Send a short note explaining what you want to offer from the Page (remember, people are thinking “what’s in it for me?”) and include a link to the Page.
You should also promote your Page elsewhere online by putting a Facebook Page button on your website to help others find it, spreading the word on Twitter if you’re there (and you should be), sending out an email notification, or putting a link on your business cards. Do whatever it takes to help people know that you’re on Facebook and you want them to become a part of your community.
Get the Most Out of Your Page
If you’ve got a brand that already has a strong following like Zappos.com or True Lemon, a Facebook Page can be a great way to launch a community. Encourage discussion among fans by asking questions like: “what’s your favorite product?” or “what could we do to improve our product?” Post updates weekly, if not daily and point your fans to any off-site promotions, such as giveaways hosted on different web sites.
And keep it fun! Nobody likes straight up business all the time! Zappos, for example, has crazy videos and posts that aren’t related to shoes, which is why their fan base is well over 21,000.
It will take time to build your fan base, so remember to keep sending out invites to new contacts asking if they want to become a fan of your business Page. Constantly promote the Page in any way possible, and keep your content fresh — give people a reason to check in on your page regularly.
Check your analytics: before long you should see a large portion of your website’s referrals coming from Facebook!
Wrapping it Up
Your Facebook efforts will be ongoing, so plan to dedicate a few hours each week to getting new fans and updating content. You’ll quickly appreciate the instant ability to connect with customers and future customers through this social media tool!
Facebook Groups
Groups are a great way to create public or private interest that you and other group members can share. It is extremely specific to the interest of the group. This can be a great way for a business to hone in on something that makes you, your product, service, or store unique. It is a great way to bring people together that share this same interest. Groups can be an extension of your personal profile, or facebook fan page that specifically focus on something.