5 Benefits of Facebook

————————————————- 5 Great Benefits of Facebook Fan Pages for Local and Small Businesses Small and Local businesses are discovering the advantages of having a Facebook fan page and are beginning to learn the secrets to attracting new customers and website visitors with simple tricks that are classified as affordable and easy. With some effort, your great plan or product can be become a fan favorite on Facebook! We often hear the old adage, It’s an amazingly small world when coincidences occur or common acquaintances are discovered.With the growing rise in popularity of Facebook, the entire world seems even smaller in recent times, simply because this popular social network connects people around the world, building a global community of shared connections and interests that knows no cultural boundary. Facebook allows users to connect not just with old friends, however with people all over the world who share their interests and passions on fan pages created for them. These fan pages are fundamental to Facebook’s popularity and incorporating one into your marketing plan might just be your ticket to success.With just a few clicks of the mouse, you   can create a Facebook fan page to advertise your product, interest or passion. Without any effort or expense by you, Facebook’s search feature will yield your fan page as being a search outcome and those who share your interest will soon find you. To help get more website visitors to your fan page without any cost, you can spread the concept about your latest page to all your current client database and Facebook connections.Considering that the average Facebook user has 130 friends, there exists nearly endless potential for attracting new individuals to your page simply by reaching over to those you already know and asking them to assist you in making connections. Naturally, you also wi ll want to be sure to promote your fan page on your website, and vice versa. Proven Benefits of Facebook Fan Pages: 1. Attract more traffic to your site through fan page links- People who find you on Facebook will probably be interested enough into your product or service to click on a link that will take them directly to your website. 2.Effortless income potential- Through Facebook’s innovative advertising options, you can make an income by targeting certain demographics and like-minded potential customers for a very low cost. 3. Easier search engine optimization- A Facebook fan page does more than heighten your exposure within a social network; a fan page raises the odds of your name being found quicker on search engines, like Google. 4. Increased customer loyalty- Current customers who follow your Facebook fan page will develop an individual connection to your product or service, particularly if you are diligent about feedback and responses with their posts.Fan pages offer fans chances to post pictures, provide product reviews and with loyal fans to post feedback and comments that may possibly attract others and provide you with priceless insight into the wants and also needs of your projected audience. 5. Get to know your customers- With Facebook’s detailed analytics, you will get entry to valuable specifics about people who follow your fan page, such as their gender, age and also place. Gaining a more rewarding knowledge of the demographics of your respective group of followers can help you more effectively reach particular people with targeted, customizable advertising.Facebook is fast becoming the most popular element that links people from around the world. As friends connect on Facebook, they naturally share information about products and services they normally use and love. That is where a Facebook fan page and its great potential for business owners enters into play. Increasing your global exposure with a fan page for your product or s ervice provides a simple means for people to hook up with you and tell their friends about you.The great thing about a Facebook fan page is the benefits that are available to even the smallest business and it also takes simply passion and purpose to attract fans and initiate to reap all of the benefits Facebook fan pages have to offer. Business owners worldwide depend on Facebook experts for a bunch of their Facebook fan page needs, from Facebook marketing suggestions to information about how to monetize Facebook. Visit us online or call us at 206. 350. 3504 to learn more about the proven advantages of Facebook fan pages and how to use them to get results for your business. ————————————————-Facebook Business Basics (Lesson 1): Facebook Status Updates and How They Work So That You Can Better Understand How to Use Them to Your Advantage October 19, 2011 by  Lisa Santos    ·Ã‚  Leave a Comment 1 Welcome to the first lesson in the Facebook Business Basics Crash Course. Over the next few weekly posts you will receive several lessons that will help you learn a few basic ways that you can build your business and increase your profits with Facebook . In this first lesson let’s talk a little about Facebook status updates and how they work so that you can better understand how to use Facebook to your advantage.Because there are so many social network terms out there, let’s start this lesson by distinguishing early on what a Facebook status actually is. A Facebook status is a post that appears for your contacts to read. Whereas before, Facebook statuses were immediately broadcast for everyone, now there are plenty of privacy settings to protect the person by letting them choose who can actually read their messages. You can also interact through your Facebook status. Friends and other contacts are allowed to comment on the Facebook status or s imply Like the status. Recently, Facebook has added a tagging feature to Facebook statuses.Put @ in the beginning and you are allowed to tag as many as 6 people in a post. Friends and contacts that are tagged will be notified in the same way that they are also notified when somebody else or the status owner has replied a status he   commented on. How are Facebook statuses important for professionals, you may ask? Well, Facebook statuses are what many consider as the very essence of Facebook. Here, customers, potential customers and other interested parties can interact on a particular piece of information in a casual manner that is way more convenient and conversational than email or even Twitter actually will.With Facebook statuses also, almost everyone can join in the conversation (that is if you want them to) which makes for a casual promotion of your product, service or company. The Facebook status is a powerful part of using Facebook for your business. The number of Likes and comments for every Facebook status will help your page climb up in its search engine position. Facebook statuses can also help you with branding efforts. For your Facebook marketing to be successful it is important that you monitor your page carefully, that you keep your status posts enthusiastic and professional at the same time.While it’s tempting to place something instantly catching, hilarious or even shocking, you need to ask yourself first whether this will help the business reputation in the long run or will it just server as temporary entertainment? It is important to optimize Facebook statuses in order to make them more searchable for potential customers. A good feature to use is Facebook status tagging. What makes this so advantageous for business owners is that when you tag affiliated companies in the post, it will also appear on their page. Therefore exposing your company to customers who may be looking at a related site.You can also do this with community pages. When you tag a community page, you will gain access to millions of potential customers who may have the same interests as your business. While it’s important to organize your Facebook status updates, it isn’t recommended that you leave all the work to organizing sites like Hootsuite. Checking through a Profile or Fan Page that are dominated by RSS Feeds is a turnoff for most potential customers. Clients want to feel like they’re interacting with a real person in the company, so be mindful of interaction.We have a lot to go over in the next few days if you want to learn how to use Facebook for your business, so make sure you look for your next lesson soon. We will be talking about how you can use Facebook to attract new customers. ————————————————- —————————————à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- ————————————————- ————————————————- Facebook Business Basics (Lesson 2): How To Use Facebook to Attract New Customers 0 It’s time for your second lesson in the Facebook Business Basics Crash Course.I hope you found lesson one informative and that you now have a good understanding of how Facebook statuses work to your advantage. In this lesson we are going to talk about how you can use Facebook to attract new customers. Some business owners ask, why is it important to establish online presence through social networking sites particularly Facebook even when if you already have an official website? Simple, because Facebook is more accessible and to most, more user-friendly than any traditional website will ever be.It gives a sense of friendliness to business that puts prospects at ease and lends a sense of credibility to businesses who have no website to speak of. Aside from this, a Facebook page allows a business to be more interactive with present and potential customers, getting their feedback for everything from product reviews to testimonials. While it may seem scary because you can be given both positive and negative feedback, businesses should not be afraid because with Facebook it can be easily moderated. If you have a mind to you can retain the best feedback and hide the rest.This way, most potential customers will be able to read the positive testimonials of previous customers. Such feedback adds a touch of authenticity to your business, and can entice the potential customer reading it. Furthermore, customers who are tired of traditional online marketing such as email, newsletters and online ads will look to the Facebook page to have their questions answered. Having a Facebook page will give your busin ess access to over 500 Million users without even having to buy e-mail addresses like what traditional email marketing resort to.Interaction isn’t limited to Facebook updates and wall posts though. You can also use Apps to provide photos, notes and videos. When using a Fanpage which is the recommended page for businesses (instead of the more personal profile page), you can change the posting ability of fans which allow them to post photos, videos and links to the page. This way, potential customers will be able to see how other customers use the product or service. Again, this can engage the community to be more interactive as was successfully executed by the Pampers’ Facebook Fanpage.Other companies like Ben & Jerry’s go as far as polling customers. This gives customers a sense of power with regards to their products, which in turn will give them a sense of ownership and acceptance. Facebook is also a great tool to gain audience to promos, special prices and di scounts as in the case of the company rushIMPRINT, who use their page to feature their products for sale. The site easily leads back to their official website as well as their toll free number. Some even use Facebook to give exclusive deals to their customers. This is a good way to gauge the effectively of your page.Various incentives can be given exclusively to Facebook users which aren’t accessible by those who follow you through e-mail, Twitter or your official website. Other companies such as Baskin Robbins develop and use a Facebook application to make their Facebook page more interactive and enticing to customers. Through their account, they’re giving out a very enticing deal, a Buy One, get one promo that most enthusiasts will not surpass. Facebook is an easy tool to master and can add just the right sense of fun, differentiating you and your business from the rest in the market. That’s it for today’s lesson.In your next lesson we will be talking a bout how to use Facebook to advertise your business without spamming. ————————————————- Facebook Business Basics (Lesson 3): How You Can Use Facebook to Advertise Your Business Without Spamming November 18, 2011 by  Lisa Santos  Ã‚ ·Ã‚  Leave a Comment 0 It’s time for your third lesson in the Facebook Business Basics Crash Course. Today let’s talk about how you can use Facebook to advertise your business without spamming. Using Facebook as the means for free advertising is probably one of the wisest moves any business person can make in this competitive marketing age.As we have been discussing Facebook offers plenty of opportunities for the business owners to launch develop and grow through its influential social network. Through Facebook, you can actually choose who to target just as easily as a paid system such as Google Ads does. Through Facebook, you can choose the location, interests, relationship status, gender, age and location of your target market. What a convenient way to start your marketing strategy online! The best part is that it can actually be free if you want it to be. Facebook gives you the option of running free or paid promotions.The paid aspect is through Facebook’s formal ads. Now, how do you run free promotions? Why, through your personal network, of course, or through your fan page. If you’re launching a product, service or brand, it is recommended to have a formal fan page. Nevertheless, personal connections such as friends, friends of friends, acquaintances and relatives will help greatly in building your business social network. Wall updates, photos, notes, group discussions and basically any other posts will help the product or service stay top-of-mind.As I mentioned in your last lesson, prospective customers want companies to have enthusiastic and informative updates. Tip: Don’t make the mistake of barraging your customers or potential customers with too many Facebook updates at one time, or worse, continuously flood their Facebook walls with the same message placed several times. Spamming is annoying no matter who does it, so take care that you avoid doing that to your friends and fans. The best way to avoid spamming others, however intentional or unintentional, is to choose your target market well.Nobody wants to receive a wall post that is a generic message of a product they’re not even interested in. You can control who sees your message by researching the person’s likes or dislikes which may be apparent in their profile page or you may also ask from a personal contact. You can even check out organizations or groups that they are affiliated with online which are related to your business or industry. Another way to place a wall post in that isn’t tantamount to spamming is to place it like a personal message. The less generic the message is,   the better.You may start with something like, ‘Hi. I just saw from your profile that you like Ice Cream and I though you may be interested in a free sample of our Homemade Ice Cream. ’ If this strategy is a bit too forward for you, then work on making Facebook applications that can insert advertisements into them or better yet, try Social Ads. Demographically speaking, these two are more effective and less time consuming than having to analyze your customers one by one. That’s it for today’s lesson. In your next lesson we will talk about using Facebook and Twitter together for your business. u are here:  Home  / Advertising ————————————————- Facbook Advertising for Local Business: 5 Benefits You Can Receive From It November 3, 2012 by  Lisa Santos  Ã‚ ·Ã‚  Leave a Comment Facebook Advertising Local Business You’ve probably read this a million times, but one of the best things you can do to boost your business’ online performance is to participate in the world of social media. And what HOT social media platform do you know that can help you with that? Facebook of course! =) Facebook is your best avenue to start on this journey of advertising.It offers a lot of features that are especially helpful for  local business  owners like yourself. If you aren’t making use of  Facebook advertising  and timeline pages (aka fan pages), then you should be, no matter how small or localized your business is. Here are five benefits for  local business  from  Facebook advertising: ————————————————- 1) Highly targeted marketing – Facebook Advertising Local Business One of the best things about Facebook ads is that you can specify exactly who you want to view your ads, based o n things like age, interests, and geographic location.For example, if you run a mobile salon business, you may opt to target your ads to women in your area who have expressed an interest in beauty, hair care, fashion, and salons. ————————————————- 2) The Snowball Effect – Facebook Advertising Local Business Basically, any time someone clicks on your ad and lands on your page, they have the option of â€Å"liking† your page if they are pleased with what they find. Any time someone likes your page, that activity shows up in that person’s newsfeed.This means that all of that person’s friends are exposed to your page and have the option of liking it themselves. Facebook ads are a great way to attract attention to your page and gain fans on an exponential level. ———————————à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- 3) Broader Reach – Facebook Advertising Local Business The numbers don’t lie: Facebook is the world’s highest ranking website, and is viewed on a global scale. You may have a small local business, but there is no question that if you sell a product, your business could benefit greatly from having a broader reach. ) Smart Phone Users – Facebook Advertising Local Business Most people these days access the web from their smart phones on a regular basis. By using Facebook advertising, you are making your presence known to local smart phone users who only search for businesses while on the go. 5) Customization – Facebook Advertising Local Business In addition to the previously mentioned targeting, Facebook ads also allow for a lot of flexibility when it comes to customizing ads to your liking, especially when compared to Google ads (a very common advertising platform that you are likely already using).For example , the ability to have longer descriptive text and the ability to add images allows you create ads that best suit your needs and marketing goals. To make the most of your social media marketing, contact the professionals. We at  LS Virtual Assistant Services  can help take your Internet presence to the next level. Contact us by phone, at 757-204-5782, or  contact here. Filed under  Advertising,  Facebook,  Facebook Marketing  Ã‚ · Tagged with  facebook ads,  facebook advertising,  facebook advertising local business,  Local Business ————————————————- Ways to Boost Up Your Facebook Fan Activity October 26, 2012 by  Lisa Santos  Ã‚ ·Ã‚  Leave a Comment Got a fan page for your business but it’s lifeless? Well, it’s time to shake things up on your fan page. With the popularity of social media sites like Facebook, there is a new way to mar ket: it’s interactive. You no longer have to figure out creative ways to relay messages that will somehow get peoples’ attention, and then sit back and hope it’s working. By marketing through social media sites like Facebook, you get to hear your customers’ reactions first-hand, and can tweak your marketing efforts accordingly.In my post today, I’m going to cover 5 ways you can wake up your fans and get them interacting on your fan page. Here we go†¦ The first way is by  interacting on other fan pages. Why is this important? Because you want to build credibility on Facebook and in order to do that you need to be an active participant on other fan pages related to your niche or business. Simply get involved in serious discussions, post useful bits of information, or even show your support for the page and people will reciprocate by participating more on your fan page.The second way is through  interactive type Apps. There are numerous apps on Facebook that are helpful in building up your fan page activitiy. An example of one is the â€Å"Fan of the Week† app which actually keeps track of your fans’ participation and acknowleges your top fan of each week. People love being recognized and this app will surely encourage your fans to keep hanging out on your fan page more often. The third way is very simple. Be GENUINE! Make your communication human and not like a robot. Be yourself. Interact on a personal level with your fans and they will respond.The fourth way is through  Fan Page partnerships. Get with other fan page owners and promote each other’s fan pages. You can promote other fan pages by sharing their pictures and posts, and by linking to their pages from your own page. And finally, another way, is by  having a contest. Create a contest of some sort and provide your fans with a chance to win a prize, based on their participation. You can set it up any way you like. It can be anything lik e a photo contest or answering a silly question and then advertise the prize and the deadline date.As you can see, there are some very simple ways you can take action on to increase your Facebook fan activity. If you want to get the most out of your social media marketing, contact the professionals. We at LS Virtual Assistant Services can be reached by phone, at (757)204-5782, or reach us on our  contact form. Filed under  Facebook,  Facebook Fan Pages,  Facebook Marketing  Ã‚ · Tagged with  faccebook activity,  facebook fan page activity,  increase fanpage activity ————————————————- How to Make Your Facebook Timeline Posts Stand Out May 1, 2012 by  Lisa Santos  Ã‚ ·Ã‚  Leave a CommentIt seems that the new Facebook format, Timeline, really has people in arms. But don’t people always complain any time Facebook makes format changes? The truth is, F acebook Timeline has some great new features that truly broaden the Facebook user experience . . . and Timeline is not going anywhere. As of today, Facebook users will have no choice but to learn and adapt to Timeline since most all profiles have been converted. One great thing you can do with your Timeline is to make your most important posts (of your choosing, of course) stand out amongst the rest of your posts.How do you accomplish this? Read on for step by step instructions: Timeline Highlight. The new feature that allows you showcase any and every post you want to call special attention to is called â€Å"Highlight. †Ã‚   Highlight is super easy to access and use, as you will see in this breakdown. (Side note: the Highlight feature applies to Facebook fan pages only. The same feature is actually called â€Å"Feature† on standard profile pages. However, both Highlight and Feature work the same way. ) How does Timeline â€Å"highlight† your posts? Basically, when you choose a post to highlight, that post is xpanded to the full width of your screen (or the full width of the Timeline, that is). Where is the Highlight feature? This is easy. Simply hover your mouse around the upper right hand corner of your post and two buttons will appear: a star and a pencil. The star is your Highlight button. The highlighting process. Click on the star. Yes, that’s it. If you make a mistake and highlight the wrong post, or if you have a change of heart and decide that a post you highlighted is unworthy, simply click the Highlight star again to remove the highlighting.What can you highlight? Anything you post on Facebook may be highlighted. This means status updates, photos, videos, Timeline events, and much more. As a matter of fact, you may use Highlight to customize the look of your page in any way you like; for example, you may opt to highlight every one of your posts if you prefer that your page fans have a large, simplified view of everything you post. Facebook’s new Highlight feature can be a powerful marketing tool, if you know how to use it. To make the most of your social media marketing, contact the professionals.We at LS Virtual Assistant Services can help take your Internet presence to the next level. Contact us by phone, at 757-204-5782, or use our  contact form  here. Filed under  Facebook,  Facebook Marketing,  Facebook Timeline  Ã‚ · Tagged with  facebook timeline,  facebook timeline highlight feature,  highlight posts in facebook,  powerful marketing tool,  social media marketing ————————————————- The Importance of Using Customized Facebook Pages that are Built to Capture Leads February 7, 2012 by  Lisa Santos  Ã‚ ·Ã‚  Leave a CommentMost business owners understand that fresh leads ultimately means more business. Therefore, having a powerful, steady stream of lead p ouring into your business is not an option – it’s a must. One way to accomplish this is with a customized Facebook Fan page that is built to specifically capture leads. I’m sure you’re heard of Facebook†¦ Yes, that site that currently has over 750 BILLION users? That’s it. Any smart business knows they need to have a strong presence on Facebook if they want to continue to grow and prosper. How does a lead capture Fan page work?Let’s say a business prospect lands on your lead capture Fan page because it’s clean, attractive, and professional-looking. They get just enough information to pique their interest so they decide to take your free offer in exchange for their email address. They now want to know more about you and decide to venture over to your website to get even more information†¦ Not only that, but now that you have their email address, you can start communicating with them on a regular basis and work on converting t hem into a customer. Can you see how this process can end up giving you an endless stream of new leads?Ensure that your business is on the front lines. A sleek, real-time and inspirational Fan page will draw in customers who did not know they needed what you have to offer. Put your advertising dollars in the right place. As a savvy business owner, harness the energy of social media fans who will â€Å"like† your business. When you customize your Fan page, whether you are a small business, non-profit or service industry, your web presence and reputation will catapult your bottom line to high profits and product longevity. Nothing motivates people more than liking what their friends like.When you use customized Fan pages to capture leads through social marketing, your business is sure to be a winner. Filed under  Facebook,  Facebook Fan Pages,  Facebook Marketing  Ã‚ · Tagged with  customized fan pages,  facebook fan pages,  facebook pages,  lead capture fan pag es,  lead capture pages ————————————————- Facebook: The Real Power Of â€Å"People See – People Do† January 24, 2012 by  Lisa Santos  Ã‚ ·Ã‚  Leave a Comment In case you haven’t noticed, just about everyone is online these days doing a thousand different things.From paying bills, to arranging travel, to shopping for a new home, people spend a LOT of time online. People are even using the Internet more than ever to keep in touch with family, friends, and co-workers. Not only do they keep in touch with each other, but they recommend products and services that they like. For instance, when one person â€Å"likes† a product or service, they let other people know about it and they, in turn, â€Å"like† the product or service too. On Facebook, businesses build followers by getting them to â€Å"Like† their Facebook Fan pages. Imagi ne omeone being in love with your product or service†¦ so they tell everyone they know. Then, they come to your Fan page and â€Å"Like† you and now they get all of your promotions and become loyal customers. The process becomes viral and continues to go on and on†¦ Business owners are becoming aware that they also need to be online in a major way to capitalize on social network usage amongst consumers. It is a fact that your business success strongly relies on a solid, reputable online existence. If you do not have a customized landing page you are actually losing out on business.Your gross income is probably sagging if you are a small business owner without an online fan base or ability to capture leads. Imagine how much traffic you can send to your website if you provide surveys for your customers about that new product you want to launch? Not only will you get real-time data for market analysis, but your customers will be delighted and relieved to know they can find you, their friend, online 24/7. If you really want to effectively allocate your marketing and advertising dollars wisely, get a Fan page setup and start a viral explosion amongst your satisfied customers.