Too many small business owners do not realize the power that a Facebook page has to market their business. If you do not advertise, it’s completely free! Facebook has, and continues to be the best social network for a small business to utilize in order to promote their business and attract new customers. Here are 7 reasons why:
- Get exposed to potential customers
As of this date, there are approaching 20 billion users on Facebook. That’s right: BILLION. People go to Facebook to be entertained and communicate with others, and part of that communication involves getting referrals and recommendations. If your business has a Facebook page, it’s easy for current customers to refer their friends and family to your page.
- Obtain more leads
Exposing your business to potential customers is great; but that’s just the first step. Unless someone is ready to purchase what you sell immediately, you need to keep your company’s name in front of the casual visitor so that when the they do need what you sell – they remember you. Facebook gives you the opportunity to gather leads through tactics such as contests, giveaways, and newsletters.
- Market for less
Like we said before, it costs zero to start a Facebook business page. Sure, you could pay a graphic designer to create a professional looking cover page – but it’s not a necessity. A great photo of one of your projects works just as well. Of course, someone must post regularly on the page, and perhaps you’ll choose to pay someone to do that; but again, it’s not a necessity. It doesn’t take much time to quickly share a project’s before and after; and those types of posts are proven to generate interest. If you have a small marketing budget, Facebook ads are relatively inexpensive when compared to traditional print advertising, radio, mailers, or other forms of local advertising. Plus, Facebook ads are much more targeted.
- Reach a very targeted audience
Facebook’s 20 billion users is impressive, but you wouldn’t want all of them to like your page. You’re only interested in the portion of that 20 billion who are in your local area. Facebook gives you the ability to direct your ads to a very targeted audience, in as small as a 10-15-mile radius. This feature makes Facebook advertising one of the most effective forms of Internet advertising. You know with certainty that anyone who sees your ad is truly a potential customer.
- Build brand loyalty
Facebook is the perfect platform for building more loyalty for your business. Why is that important? Because today, people don’t just go online to find businesses to buy from. They want to find businesses with whom they CONNECT. They want to know that the companies they patronize have similar values and priorities. Facebook gives you the opportunity to showcase your company’s values in a personal way. Be consistent about showing the human side of your business, provide valuable relevant content, and your followers will begin to associate with your business – or brand – in a more personal way. You also can respond immediately to private messages from followers. Using this feature, many businesses use their Facebook page as a form of customer service. Your responsiveness to private messages can go a long way in building loyalty toward your business.
- Increase traffic to your website
A Facebook page is a great way to market your business, but it’s no substitute for a stand-alone website. Smart business owners use their Facebook page to drive more traffic to their business website. Think of your Facebook page as a more casual and relaxed way of presenting your business and your website as the more traditional, professional presentation. On Facebook, you want to keep straight promotion to a minimum; but with Facebook link posts, you can draw attention to content that resides on your website. In fact, posting links to your website is essential to any social media strategy.
- Reach mobile users
Many small businesses haven’t updated their website so that it is mobile responsive. That means when someone opens a page on their cell phone or tablet, the page scales to that screen size. Most people who access Facebook do it on a mobile device, and that trend is expected to continue. Facebook has already done the work to ensure that your page is optimized on any mobile device. That means you aren’t losing views to pages that ARE optimized.
There are other reasons to have a Facebook business page, but hopefully, these top 7 have convinced you that you need one! If you’re ready, but just don’t have the time to invest, consider leasing a “rank and rent” website where social media marketing is included in the package, such as Lead-Flow™ website packages from Inovail. For a minimal monthly fee, you get a lot of marketing tools to grow your business, including exposure on Facebook. Click here to inquire about Lead-Flow websites.