If you are using Facebook and have a business, you need to consider creating a fan page for your business. What’s a fan page? Facebook originally created fan pages to allow celebrities and large corporations to connect with more people. After all, your personal profile only allows you to connect to 5,000 people. Stars like Vin Deisel have millions of followers. That’s what fan pages are about.
However, you don’t need to be a celebrity to create a Fan Page. Regardless of your business, you can benefit from having a page for it on Facebook. If you already have a personal profile on Facebook and are using it to network and promote your business, here are seven reasons why you should create a fan page:
Branding
Unlike your personal profile, Fan Pages allow you to use your business name, logo, and any other branding around your business. You can customize pages so they look similar to your website, Twitter page or YouTube Channel. This allows you to keep a consistent image between your Facebook page and any other online presence you have.
By having a Fan Page, you can differential between the personal you and the business you. This can be particularly important if you have family and friends connecting with you who aren’t as professional as you like. You can steer people to your fan page and avoid unpleasant conflict between the two.
Unlimited fans
Your personal profile only allows you to connect 5000 people. Now if you’re only connecting with people you actually know in the real world, then this limit is probably not be a problem for you. However, if you’re using Facebook as a virtual networking event, then at some point you may approach the 5000 limit.
A fan page however, allows you to have an unlimited number of fans. There are celebrities and businesses who have thousands and even millions of fans.
In addition, unlike your personal profile reason only send a single message to a maximum of 20 people at a time, your fan page allows you to send updates to all your fans at once. You can also include rich media content such as links or photos in these updates. Now of course, just because you can update everybody, doesn’t mean you should. Just like and then on Facebook online world, you need to be mindful of people’s time and the size of their inboxes. If you are sending too many updates you’re going to annoy your fans, and tell me if your site.
Fan pages are the only part of Facebook that is fully indexed by Google. What does this mean? Anything you post to your Facebook fan page will be found by Google. Items on your personal profile or in groups will not. This means if you have a fan page, you increase the chances of your business being found online, not just by people on Facebook, but people throughout the Web.
Not only that, Facebook has an Alexa ranking of two. This means Facebook is the second most trafficked site on the web (second only to Google). Therefore, links from your Facebook fan page to your website will increase the importance of your website in Google’s eyes.
Instant Access
Unlike a group, people do not have to be a member of Facebook to view your fan page. If you fan page shows up in a Google search or they click a link from your website, people can look at your entire fan page even if they are not members of Facebook. Of course, they will be given the option of becoming a fan and then be asked to either sign in or join Facebook.
Interaction With Your Audience
Your Facebook fan page allows you to have a more personal interaction with your fans then you might have on your website. True, you can set up forums and discussion rooms on your website, but many small business owners are do-it-yourselfers or have a limited tech-support budget. Therefore, including this features on your website can be difficult or expensive.
With your Facebook fan page however, all the functionality is already there. Fans can post on the wall, upload photos, videos, and ask questions depending on the settings you choose. By allowing interaction you do a number of things. First, you are building relationships with your audience. Because it is not just a one-way conversation, you speaking in them listening, their relationship with you and your brand will become stronger. Also, by having your fans interact with your fan page, you motivate them to return.
Drive traffic
Because you can customize your fan page, you can include links to your website and opt-in box for your e-mail newsletter. Remember, Facebook has over 350 million active users. By active they mean people who are logging into the site regularly, often daily. This is a huge customer base that you can potentially access. By connecting with them on your fan page and then driving them to your website or collecting their e-mail addresses, you increase your ability to market these people and eventually toun them into customers.
Multimedia
Facebook allows you to upload videos, photographs, and audio all for free. This means you don’t have to worry about using up bandwidth on your own website. Not only that, by adding multimedia to your Facebook fan page you are increasing the richness of your fans experience. You are deepening their connection with you and increasing the likelihood that it will become customers.
Regardless of how many people your connect to on Facebook, whether you are an absolute newbie or a veteran Facebook user, if you have a business you must have a Facebook page. You don’t need to wait until you have hundreds or even thousands of Facebook friends. By creating your fan page right away, you can realize all the benefits from the start.
Andrea J. Stenberg
Do you have a Fan Page? Leave a comment with the URL and tell us why we should check it out!
