Is your small business on Facebook? If not, you’re one of the few who have stayed away from “The Social Network.” According to recent statistics, more than 750 million people are active on the site, with more than 1 billion expected by some time in 2012.
As a small business owner, being able to reach even a portion of that audience would be substantial. Below are seven reasons why your small business should be on Facebook:
1) It’s Easy: Facebook is designed for ease of use. Sure, the company seems to change functions on a whim, but the basics stand pat. Who are your friends and what are they doing? Setting up a page for your business isn’t nearly as simple as establishing your profile, but it’s also not overwhelmingly difficult. Facebook can guide you through the process, if you want to take the plunge. And if you don’t, plenty of designers or social media marketing types can do it for you.
2) Customers: You know those millions, soon to be billions, of people on Facebook? Many of them are your customers. Even more are your potential customers. By building a Facebook presence for your small business, you have a direct line to them. What’s that worth to you?
3) Immediate Feedback: That direct line to your customers is also a fantastic tool for receiving real-time feedback. What do they like or dislike about one of your products? You can find out quickly with a Facebook business page. Perhaps you have a limited-time special offer. Push it out through your Facebook business page and watch the responses come in.
4) Competition: If you have a page for your business, or you’re thinking about building one, your competitors are probably doing the same. You don’t want your company to be the one that gets left out of the discussion. Building a Facebook page for your business is not only a necessity, but also a form of self-preservation.
5) Search Engine Optimization: You want your customers to be able to find your business online as easily as possible. An active Facebook page helps to ensure that search engines like Google and Bing – the tools used most frequently for online searches – can find you and index you in their monster databases.
6) Cross-Promotion: Facebook is one part of the puzzle. To build your company’s social media presence, you need, at a minimum, to also have a blog. It wouldn’t hurt to also be active on Twitter. All of these pieces work together. Write a blog and post it on your Facebook business page. Tweet about a contest running on your Facebook business page. The multiple opportunities are what make social media so powerful. Facebook is essential.
7) Facebook Ads: Millions of people are on Facebook. Target them with an ad. Facebook ads are a simple, and relatively cheap, way to attract customers. But you don’t have access to them without a page for your small business.
Does your business have a Facebook business page? If so, how are you using it? If not, what’s keeping you from getting one started today?
About Greg Cross
Greg's attention to detail is outstanding. His ability to effectively communicate with his clients is pertinent to his work. For websites that market and represent your business as you envisioned, contact Greg!
Pingback: Small businesses will be able to join Google+ | Small Business Marketing Blog