By Stephanie
Chandler
It seems the most
popular question lately is, “Are you on Facebook?” Launched as a way
for founder Mark Zuckerberg to connect with friends at Harvard,
Facebook has exploded into the mainstream. With nearly 200 million
users, and a million new members joining each week in the U.S.
alone, people are paying attention.
One of the biggest
benefits that social networking platforms like Facebook provide the
business community is the ability to get repeat exposure with the
people in your network. Clients, peers, and prospects can make up
your network, and you can promote events, sales, special offers and
more through your Facebook profile.
Not only is Facebook
a tool for your business, but it can be fun to connect with old
friends, family and coworkers. There is something about sharing an
old grade school photo that can create an instant bond with those
from your past. Even personal connections have the potential to
become new business opportunities.
Ready to get
started? Here are some ways to maximize Facebook for your business:
Create a Powerful
Profile
There is no cost to
create a profile on Facebook and based on site policies, it must be
tied to a human name, not a business name. Use the “About Me”
section to describe your business and what you do. In the
“Information” box on your main profile page, you can feature links
to your website, blog and other business resources. Be sure to
include your photo so that others can recognize you online.
Build Your Contact
List
Facebook is based on
the concept of connecting with friends. You can send and receive
friend requests and once accepted, your friend can view your profile
and you can view theirs. To begin connecting with people that you
know, you can either import your contact database or you can search
Facebook for individual people.
You can also view
the friends list for each person you are connected to. As an
example, once you have accepted a friend request from your peer,
Mary, you can view her list of friends. If you know any of Mary’s
friends (or you would like to know them), send a connection request.
Communicate with
Wall Posts
Each Facebook member
has a “wall” where friends can post messages. This is a great place
to post a quick note to those in your friends list. In the business
networking world, this is the online equivalent of picking up the
phone to say hello.
For example, if you
are connected to a CEO who you saw at an event recently, you could
post a note on her wall that says, “Loved your presentation at the
XYZ event – thanks for the great ideas!”
Update Your Status
At the top of your
Facebook home page is a status box. When you post a status update,
everyone in your friends list can see your update on their home
page. Those using Facebook for social purposes might update their
status to say, “Jenny is putting the kids to bed.” For business
purposes, this is a place to share tips, promote events and even
boost sales.
Effective business
updates could include: “Jenny found a great article on social
networking: www….” or “Joe at ABC furniture is hosting a special
event! Check out www….”
Participate in
Groups
Online groups allow
you to network virtually with potential clients and peers. To access
groups, start from your Facebook home page, view the list of
applications and click on “Groups.” You can browse through thousands
of themed groups with topics ranging from business to politics and
everything in between.
You can also search
groups to find topics related to your industry. For example, if you
own an office supply store in Sacramento, you might search for
general business groups based in Sacramento. If you are an auto
parts dealer, you might join the Honda Civic owners group along with
other auto-related groups.
If you really want
to maximize the potential with groups, consider starting one of your
own. Once again, there is no cost to do this and the visibility can
be great. For example, if you are a business broker in Dallas, you
could start a group for Dallas business owners. You do not need to
promote your business at every turn. Instead, make it known that
you’re a broker, but provide value for members by sharing
interesting tips and engaging with them in the online forum.
Build Your Friends
List
For business
purposes, the one with the most friends on Facebook wins. Okay, not
exactly, but the point is to connect with as many potential clients
as possible. One way to do this is to join a group and send
connection requests to fellow members with a note: “Hey, we’re both
members of XYZ group. Let’s connect here on FB!”
Just as you would
with an in-person business introduction, take a moment to learn
about new people you meet on Facebook. Networking always works best
when there is a two-way exchange. If you can help a new Facebook
friend, they will likely want to return the favor.
Create Fan Pages
Because Facebook
requires that a profile be designated to a human, not a business,
they have instead provided the ability to create fan pages. You can
create a fan page for a business, product, book, author, speaker,
celebrity or just about anything you want.
To create a fan
page, scroll all the way down to the bottom of Facebook and click on
“Advertising” (don’t worry, it doesn’t cost anything to set-up).
Next, click on “Pages” at the top of the screen. You will find some
helpful explanations about how pages work, along with a link that
will allow you to create your page.
Pages function a lot
like profiles so you can add links, events, discussion boards and
other features that make them interactive. Facebook will also post
updates from your fan pages back on to your profile so others know
about them. And instead of sending friend requests out, you can
invite others to become a “fan” of your page. You will also have the
ability to send messages to all of your fans, allowing you to
cultivate a community online.
Manage Your Time
The biggest
complaint most have about social networking is that it takes a lot
time to manage. I recommend designating time in your day for
Facebook activities. You can login once or twice a day to view
messages and manage your connections. Just be careful not to let
time get away from you (it’s easy to do!). Also, remember that the
more time you spend on Facebook, the more ways you will find to use
it to your advantage. Be creative, show your personality and have
some fun. That will all be reflected in your success.
About the Author:
Stephanie Chandler is an author of several business and marketing
books including “The Author’s Guide to Building an Online Platform”
and “From Entrepreneur to Infopreneur.” She is also founder and CEO
of
AuthorityPublishing.com, which provides custom book publishing
and author marketing services for business, self-help and other
non-fiction books. A frequent speaker at business events and on the
radio, she has been featured in Entrepreneur Magazine, BusinessWeek,
Inc.com and many other media outlets. For hundreds of resources for
entrepreneurs, authors and speakers visit
http://BusinessInfoGuide.com. For author and speaker details,
visit
http://StephanieChandler.com.
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