Facebook Fan Pages

Have you created your Facebook Fan Page yet? Many of us are getting more familiar with Facebook and happily using it to keep in touch with friends and family on a personal level. And some of us may even be using our Facebook profile to help support our businesses. But did you know that Facebook actually has a policy on self-promotion using personal profiles?

"All personal site features, such as friending and messaging, are also for personal use only and may not be used for professional promotion. If you add a user as a friend, for example, this person will be invited to be a friend of your profile and not your Page. Using personal site features for professional promotion, or creating unauthorized Pages, may result in your account being warned or disabled." -- Facebook

Yikes! You don't want to be banned from Facebook!

So if you haven't created your Facebook Fan page yet for your business, you can get started right now. First, log in to your personal Facebook account. And then go to http://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php. This will take you through the steps to help you create your page.

Remember that your Fan page is in no way connected to your Personal page. Your Fans won't be able to click a link to see your personal profile. Your personal privacy is still protected even with a Fan page!

Some things I recommend when creating your Facebook page:

1. Definitely add your picture or your business logo! Give your fans a way to connect the business to you and easily recognize you.
2. Complete the Company Information block under the Info tab. Make it short and sweet, but be sure to give a good, complete overview of who you are and what you do. Don't forget to include your Web address.
   
3. Include your Web site in the box under your photo/logo, starting the address with "http://". Facebook is a great way to introduce yourself to new customers and stay in touch, but you really want to drive people to your Web site. That's where they'll learn more about you AND take initiative to contact you about possibly sending business your way.
4. Post to your wall on a consistent basis. These posts will show up on your Fans' personal walls, creating an awesome viral marketing opportunity.
5. Make sure to publish your page so it is public and everyone can view it. This makes is searchable and easy to find, and allows people to become a fan.
6. Add your newsletter sign up box to your page. I wrote instructions for that process in a previous blog post.
7. Invite your friends to become fans. Click on the "Suggest to Friends" link under your picture/logo, select the friends you want to invite, and click Send Invite. They will get an invitation asking them to become fans of your business page.
8. Send updates to your fans. Rather than wait for your fans to visit your blog or wall, attract them to your page by using the "Send Update to Fans" link under your picture/logo. You can post a link to direct fans to read a blog or visit your Web site.

Facebook has many fun, yet effective ways to keep in touch and interact with people through your Fan page. You can even add pictures and video to your page to encourage conversation and feedback. We'll cover more Facebook Applications for Business soon, so be sure to check back to find helpful Facebook tips for marketing your business.

The Benefits of Blogging

If you don't already have a blog for your small business, or if you're not posting regularly, you should! Blogging has so many benefits - it's one of those opportunities for consistent marketing that you just shouldn't pass up. Here are just a few reasons why:

1. Improve communication - Blogging opens the lines of communication between you and your clients/customers. You can offer content relevant to your products and services and readers can offer opinions and suggestions by posting comments. This feedback can help you understand how to provide better service and meet the needs of your readers.
2. Increase Exposure - A blog will make it possible for more people to find you in Internet searches. In addition to your Web site, your blog contains key words that customers use when looking for businesses in your industry. With a blog and a Web site, you make it more likely for people to find you. Plus, you also expose your business to a global audience, rather than only reaching locals through traditional media marketing techniques.
3. Relevant Content - Your blog offers you the ability to post new, "hot-off-the-presses" information and news. You can show readers that your business is in tune with today's business environment and aware of the latest technology, trends, and consumer needs. And, by consistently adding fresh content, search engines will find you more easily.
4. Show Your Expertise - Blogs can establish your business knowledge and build your credibility with readers. By providing accurate, factual information and providing advice based on your education and experience, you can show readers that you are one of the best resources available when they need information about your industry.
5. Low Cost - While a good Web site will require a significant monetary investment, a blog is often free. Your blog site can easily be branded to match your site, but your dollar investment is minimal. Of course, it will take attention and time to maintain your blog and keep it fresh, but by planning and writing your posts in advance, you can be more productive and keep a consistent schedule.

Questions to Consider When Developing a Content Marketing Campaign

There are several topics to consider as you prepare to use social media to market your business. You'll want to be sure that you've considered each aspect of social networking as it relates to the content you want to distribute. As you plan your content marketing strategy for social media, here are 10 questions to consider:

1. Who is your target market? Write your content to coincide with age, gender, level of education, geographic location, income, and other important characteristics that you've identified. For example, you will write differently to reach a group of 18-21 year olds than you would to speak to a group of 50-60 year olds.
2. Which networking site will help you reach that target? Each medium attracts different users, and you should know where you are mostly likely to find your target audience. LinkedIn may be appropriate for some content, but MySpace might make more sense for others.
3. Who will write the content that you will distribute? Are they skilled at writing clearly and concisely? You may have experts in your organization that will be your resource for the information, but make sure the person who is preparing the content is skilled at writing with a conversational and genuine style. You want content that clearly presents a message. In general, you want proper grammar, spelling, and sentence structure, but there are always exceptions depending on your audience and purpose. Someone who is familiar with Web content can help you decide what is ok and what is too casual.
4. What is your plan for responding to the comments, questions, and feedback generated by your content? Who in your organization is responsible for this task? Someone must monitor your social media profiles for all types of communication. A lack of response to a question or comment could be deadly to your reputation and will hurt relationships. Have someone track the conversation and identify further content ideas based on what others are saying or asking. It's also a good idea to set up Google Alerts with your business name and key people as search terms. This will help you catch the comments that are circling about you and give you a chance to respond quickly and appropriately.
5. Is your content honest, sincere, trustworthy, and important to your audience? Write about relevant topics and be genuine in your efforts to educate and inform. Your content should portray a helpful, supportive approach. Eliminate all pretentious, judgmental, and patronizing language.
6. Are you writing to sell or writing to educate? Content marketing focuses on education. Inform, don't advertise.
7. What is the problem/need that your product or service will solve/meet? Show the potential customer that you can relate to their problems, and that you have a solution that can help.
8. How can you position your business/yourself as an expert in your industry? Customers expect you to know your industry and the upcoming trends. Be willing to share and contribute your knowledge to the conversations that occur on social networking sites. Customers will appreciate your input and respect your opinions.
9. How will you encourage your customers to share your content with friends and colleagues? Ask your friends, fans, and followers to invite others to be a part of the conversation. Let them know you appreciate their support and thank them for their loyalty. Share you successes and attribute that (at least in part) to their interest and word-of-mouth advertising.
10. What results do you expect to see? An increase in communication? An increase in sales? How will you know your strategy has been successful? Be sure to gather benchmark information when you start a campaign so you can clearly see how your customers are responding to your content. Set goals for each campaign and study the statistics to make sure you are seeing positive results. If not, take an objective look at your content and consider revising your strategy.

What tips and topics are important to you when thinking about social media campaigns? How do you plan your content strategy? We'd love to hear your thoughts. Leave us a comment or respond to info@e-websmart.com.

Add a Newsletter Sign-Up Box to Your Facebook Fan Page

If you're using Constant Contact for your e-newsletters and you have Facebook page for your business, you have a great opportunity to build your newsletter list. Just add your Sign-up Box link to your page! This process requires adding the FBML application to your Facebook page, and we've provided step-by-step instructions below. Here's how:

1. In Constant Contact, go to Contacts. Choose Site Visitor Signup from the menu at the top of the page.
2. Click "Start Wizard to generate HTML code"
3. Select the your preferred style (Basic, Bubble, or Stylish) and click Next
4. Customize your link with colors, fonts, and texts, then click Next
5. Click preview to see your form.
6. When you are happy with your sign-up box, click Next.
7. Place your cursor in the HTML code box. Hit Ctrl+A to select all.
8. Hit Ctrl+C to copy the code.

Now, log-on to your Facebook Account. Follow these instructions to add the FBML application and the use it to display your newsletter sign-up box.

1. In the lower left corner, above your start button, click on the Applications menu.
2. Click Browse More Applications
3. On the All Applications page do search for “FBML”. Be sure to search in the Search Apps box and not the search box on the blue bar in the top right corner.
4. Add the Static FBML application by clicking on the icon.
5. Click on the Add to my Page link in the left hand column.
6. A new box will pop up with a list of your pages. Select which page you wish to add Static FBML to and click Add to Page. Close that box.
7. Now go to your fan page. Click on the tiny green and blue flag icon (Ads and Pages) in the bottom left corner of your screen.
8. On the next page, click the Pages link.
9. Find the FBML application box. Click on the pencil icon in the right corner. Then click on Edit.
10. Change the Title box to say "Newsletter Sign-Up" or something similar.
11. In the empty right box on the screen click CTRL+V; this will paste the sign up box code to your page.
12. Click Save Changes.
13. Now go the Edit Page screen by clicking on the Edit link next to your page name.
14. Find the Newsletter Sign-Up box and click on the pencil icon in the right corner. Then click on Application Settings.
15. Click on Additional Permissions.
16. Click the box next to "Publish recent activity..." Then Click OK.
17. Now click on View Your Page.
18. Click on the Boxes tab and find the newsletter box you just created.
19. Click on the pencil icon in the right corner.
20. Click Move to Wall tab.
21. You will now see the box in the left hand column of your Fan Page. When Fans enter their e-mail address, it is automatically entered into your Constant Contact Account.

Note: You can move the box by grabbing the title bar with your mouse and dragging the box. You'll see a dotted outline to help you see where the box will land when you drop it.

This same process for adding FBML can be used to add any HTML code to your page. Go to the Edit Page screen, and click on the blue pencil icon in the newsletter FBML box and choose Edit. At the bottom of the next screen, click Add another FBML box and start with step 9.