Facebook business pages are one of the genius inventions of our time. They have become an important tool that any small business owner should include in their marketing toolbox. Facebook supplies businesses with endless creative social media marketing ideas to promote small business solutions. Unfortunately, a lot of small business owners are still fumbling blindly with this great feature and hoping to miraculously hit the Facebook Social Media Marketing G-spot.
To effectively use Facebook business pages as a social media marketing tool, you first of all need to develop an engaged Facebook audience, which you can achieve either by paid advertising or by strategic marketing of your Facebook page. I prefer to work with the latter for obvious reasons. It is not only cheap, but also results in more engaged fans.
Here are 6 of the best Facebook marketing tips that I personally employ to grow my Facebook business page likes: Before you read all the 6 tips, kindly share this post on your favorite social media network.
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Offering Freebies for a Like
Everyone I have met likes a freebie or a discount. It doesn’t matter whether you are in the brick and mortar industry or what-have-you. When customers get to the checkout page of your e-store, ask them to like your business page in exchange for a percentage discount on their cart total. The same case applies to giving out virtual freebies such as e-books. Before you can grant download permission, ask your leads to like your Facebook business page. Most people will jump at the chance for a discount or freebie and Like the page, allowing you to build your Facebook Likes.
Vary the Type of Content You Post on Your Facebook Page
We are living in an internet age where content has been lauded to be king. It is therefore important to keep your Facebook business page alive with varying content types in order to attract new likes and keep the existing fans engaged.
Your Facebook posts should be 80 characters or less. The shorter the post, the more people will engage with it and share it. While images are an important part of Facebook, do not monopolize your Facebook page with images. Try to strike a balance between infographics, links, videos and text-only posts.
Have a Consistent Schedule For Posting Content
Post content between one and four times a week. Do not skip weeks of posting, or fans will forget about your business. On the other hand, posting too much will make fans un-Like your page.
Following the one to four rule will create 71 percent more brand engagement. Facebook has made it much easier to plan the consistency of Facebook Page updates by including an option to schedule your Facebook posts, be sure to check it out.
Timing Matters
At what time do you normally check your Facebook updates?
This could be the same time that your fans are logging in. Even if your business is only open 9-5, do not post things on your page during this time frame. This is when most of your customers will be at work and not able to check their Facebook updates. Instead, post during the 6pm to midnight time slot when people are relaxing and are likely to be browsing through their social media networks.
It is also important to know the best days of the week to post content. Thursday is the best day to post on Facebook. People are anxious for the weekend and making plans on Facebook. Friday is the second best day to post things since people are checking their accounts to see where friends are going. Weekends are the absolute best time to post since people spend more time on Facebook on the weekend.
Make Your Facebook Business Page Updates Sensational
People love sharing content that impresses them or makes them laugh or cry.
Post images, links, or stories about things related to your business that hit an emotional nerve. If you are the bakery, for example, try to post a funny cupcake comic. You could also post a story about a bakery giving their leftover cookies to the homeless in the area. Or you could post a little known fact about baking or dessert history.
Give Instructions and Tasks To Your Fans, They Will Love You More for It
Ask your Facebook fans questions and post polls to get them engaged with your brand. As the bakery, you could ask which of the three flavor options you should bake for cookies this week. Or you could ask for their favorite dessert to eat. This information not only engages customers, but gives you insight into their tastes and habits. Don’t be afraid to tell them to Like something, comment on a post, or share a link. Many will follow your instructions with good content, or with incentives to share. This increases your brand awareness.
Be social!
The reason it is called social media is because you need to be social online in order to market effectively.
Start conversations in posts by asking questions. Respond to user comments and complaints on the page. Time needs to be spent building relationships with your customers on Facebook. This allows them to value your brand more and become loyal to your business.
Patrick Mahinge is a prolific digital marketer and "serial webpreneur". He runs multiple profitable niche websites and blogs monetized through affiliate marketing and advertising. Patrick generously shares his expertise in affiliate marketing, blogging, and online business through his Facebook group of over 5,000 aspiring entrepreneurs.
