If Google is the doorway into today's internet Facebook is the living room. It ranks second only to Google in number of visits and it is where a big percentage of people spend a big percentage of their time while online.
That makes having an effective Facebook business page a very important element in most any online marketing strategy. A good Facebook page is much more than a simple profile; it takes some work and a clear strategy for customers to truly "like" your page.
If you are not a fan of your own current Facebook business page, here are five ways to give it a facelift:
1. Optimize Your Page for SEO
Even though it is on Facebook many people will still find your page through Google or other search methods. Some of the same things you would do to improve the SEO ranking of your stand-alone website can also be done with your Facebook page. For SEO, you will want to effectively use keywords and links back to your main site in the "About" section of your page, including the "Description" and "General Information" fields. Even though many visitors to your page may never read that information, Google will.
2. Optimize Your Page Design
Just because the "Timeline" layout dictates the basic template of your page doesn't mean that you are powerless to design an attractive Facebook page. Besides the graphic possibilities presented by the large cover photo (and smaller profile picture), you can control other aspects of the appearance by "pinning" posts to the top of your timeline, "starring" items so that they cover the width of the page and creating custom tabs.
3. Use Posts to Create Interaction
Facebook users will generally not see your page unless there is some current activity for the Facebook news feed to report on. And the algorithm that Facebook uses to determine which items are most newsworthy depends largely on interaction: how many people comment on or "like" an update. By starting conversations or asking simple, engaging questions on a regular basis more people will see your business page each day.
4. Utilize Media Including Photos and Video
Facebook has become the scrapbook of the modern age. People go there expecting to see photos or short videos. Photos and videos are visually interesting and require interaction (by clicking on the thumbnail) to be fully seen.
5. Tag Along
By tagging people (or your business itself) in photos, videos or status updates you demonstrate your relevance and relationship to customers or industry experts. And each "tag" shows up as a news item on that person's timeline.
