7 Ways to Build Your Fan Base on Facebook

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Building a Facebook profile is a great first step in building a solid presence online. But after the profile is up and running and you are confidently posting images, status updates and commenting on other pages the real work begins! In order for your page to create brand awareness you have to be relentless in your efforts to gain more Likes.

small_1440189243The amount of Likes doesn’t determine the total effectiveness of your campaign, but the more eyeballs that see your profile the better. There are several tactics that you can implement to ensure your presence is visible and continues to grow.

7 Ways to Build Your Fan Base on Facebook

1) Link your profiles to your existing website

If you already have a website, be sure to include links to your social media profiles. If you author a blog, be sure to include a link that allows the reader to share your content on their Facebook page. If your site was designed using WordPress, there are several quality social plugins that you can install to increase the share-ability of your posts.

I would be happy to explain the concept in greater detail, but for sake of brevity, I am going to leave that option up to you. Give me a call at 815.441.2219. I think you’ll be impressed by what I have to say!

 2) Ask your customer to “Like” your page

Don’t be afraid to ask your customers or clients to follow you on social media. Create static displays in-store that directs them to your pages. Be sure to use recognizable Facebook logos in your advertising. The famous thumbs-up, or a similar color concept allows your visitors to easily make the connection.

3) Leverage your existing email address list

If you don’t have in your possession a list of past, present and future prospect’s contact information, you are missing out on a big chunk of marketing wealth. There is no better way to promote your existence on social media than to send out a quick email notification. Let your subscribers know that you’re taking your marketing efforts to the next level! Provide them with links, and directions on how to “Like” your page.

 4) Include your social media address on all of your out-of-office marketing

If you are advertising in the paper, magazines or designing your own direct mail, be sure to slap your social media address on everything that leaves the office. Directing individuals to your existing website is less effective than sending them to your Facebook profile. If they visit your website, they will eventually click away, and unless they subscribe to your mailing list, they might be gone forever! If they land on your Facebook page, and Like your content, you now have the ability to reach them on a daily basis. Videos, pictures, and informative status updates morph into something they look forward to viewing each and every day.

 5) Add your profile links to your email signature block

Implementing this tactic is a great way for you to, and without any effort,  inform new contacts that you are active on social media. How many emails do you send out daily? If it’s more than zero, you need to adopt this practice, and do it quickly! It’s simple, and absolutely FREE. The people that we engage with via email tend to be very influential, and we would benefit from absorbing them into our growing social fan base.

 6) Engage with other pages

Comment on photos, participate in the conversation and share like-minded content from other pages. Social media is just that, a chance for you to interact and get social with your peers. If you slap a page together, publish it, but fail to join the conversation, your page will not gain new followers, and all of your time up until now would have been wasted. Time is the one thing that we can’t get back, so be sure to take full advantage of the opportunities technology has given you.

 7) Create a contest

As business owners we strive to increase profits and decrease expenses. Keeping that in mind, running a contest is an insanely effective way to build followers. But don’t offer the latest iPad as a prize. If you have the budgets to roll like that, than more power to you. But if you are like most new businesses testing the social waters, you are limited on your promotional offerings. A free lunch, discount coupon, or small gifts are still powerful motivators. Think small but promote big! I run a weekly campaign that I dubbed Darth Tater Tuesday. Every Tuesday, I take my Darth Vader Potato Head figure out of the office, and we visit a local business. If they allow me, I use their location to take a quick photo of Darth. I post the image on my Facebook, and ask the question, “Where’s Darth Tater?” The first person to guess correctly wins a small prize that I purchase from that participating business. I reinvest my money back into the local economy, and as a result the winner has to come into the store and claim their prize. That gives the store owner the opportunity to make a new connection, and maybe gain a new customer in the process.

Don’t be too quick to give up on your social media efforts. The marketing business no longer provides instant gratification. It takes time to win their interest, and it takes even longer to build trust. The good news is, all of your hard work will garner a lifelong customer following. Word will spread, and your social status will grow. Be patient and always see things through the eyes of your customer.

Just stay with it and don’t give up! Social media is often quick to disappoint those that aren’t dedicated, and fail to put in the work required to notice a return on their investment.

What do they want and can you provide it?

Answer that, and you are on your way to building a crazy successful business!

~Andy

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Now that you read our Bent Business Babble, you nest step is to cruise on over to Facebook and Like our profile!

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photo credit: nomeacuerdo via photopin cc

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