Facebook - It's a Country!

Do you have a business page on Facebook? I’m in the process of having mine developed at the moment. I know it’s taken a while, but it’s officially off our ‘must-do’ list!

There is so much information out there about what you need to do, what not to do, and what maybe you should do, in relation to your business page. So to cut through this information, I thought I would share with you an excerpt from Guy Kawasaki’s latest book *Enchantment.

Now in his book, Guy Kawasaki has actually enlisted the help of Mari Smith, who Fast Company dubbed “The Pied Piper of Facebook”. Here are some of her strategies for using your business page effectively:

• Add a landing tab to your business page. You can specify which ‘tab’ people see on your Facebook business page. In most cases, it’s called the “Welcome” tab, and is customised with specific graphics, promotional text, and don’t forget to place your free offer on this page as well with a sign up box to capture names.
• Use @ tags strategically. You can give up to six ‘@ tags’ in any update/wall post consisting of a mix of friends, fan pages, events, or groups.
• Provide an area for your fans to promote themselves. To honour your fans and to minimize Spam posts on your wall, give your fans their own forum with the Discussion tab. Specify how and where you want them to post.
• Respond to fans’ post promptly and personally. Implement an effective engagement strategy, and reply to your fans’ comments and questions. Personalise your replies and use fans’ first names for an informal feel.
• Surprise your fans. From time to time, give your Facebook business page a burst of excitement by introducing initiatives like “Fan Page Friday” or “Share Your Blog Day” and invite all your fans to share their links on your wall.
• Get your fans involved in product and content creation. Involve and include your Facebook fans when creating new products or when seeking ideas for new blog posts. This is called crowdsourcing.

Facebook, it’s a growing phenomenon, and if it’s where your ideal clients are, then you absolutely want to be there. If you don’t already follow Mari Smith, then I recommend you do. Not only does she provide loads of up-to-date information, but she’s very giving in the amount of information she provides as well.

Let's continue our conversation - if there is any additional strategies that you use to engage with your fans on Facebook, why not share them with us on our blog. Oh, and don’t forget to include your Facebook Fan Page as well!

*Enchantment - The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions, by Guy Kawasaki