Friday, October 14, 2011

how to create a facebook business page



You may already use Facebook for personal reasons such as keeping up with your friends or sharing photos, but the idea of running a business page on the world's largest social network might still seem intimidating. Where do you start? What should your goals be? How much work will it take?

Fret no more! This short video and blog post will offer step-by-step instructions on how to create a Facebook business page, covering some of the reasons why you should set one up and why its interactive elements make it such a great tool for business promotion.


1. Choose a Classification

Facebook provides six different classifications for creating a page:
  • Local business or place
  • Artist, band, or public figure
  • Company, organization, or institution
  • Entertainment
  • Brand or product
  • Cause of community
It is likely you will fall into one the top three options. This classification will help you rank in more relevant searches and provide relevant information fields on your page.
After selecting one of the six, choose the category you are in, and fill out your business name (or if you selected one of the other options, your brand or company name). The business option also asks for further location information. Keep in mind that your category and name cannot be changed once your page is created. So type wisely; otherwise, you’ll have to delete the entire page and start anew. 

2. Complete Basic Information

Upload a photo that will stand as the main visual representation for your business page. Ideally, this should be your company logo. Facebook will then ask you to invite your friends. Uncheck the option to “share this page on my wall” and “like this page.” You don’t want this popping up in news feeds until you’re done building the foundation of your online image. You will next be prompted to fill in your basic information. Add your website URL and a brief bio in the ‘About’ section. You can choose to focus on your product, business model, strategy, or the like. 

3. Fill the Page

Click “Edit Info,” and add information you deem pertinent for your organization. If you’re a local business, you’ll likely want to add your hours of business. Businesses should also add a description. A description is different from your ‘about’ section in that you can share more in-depth information about your business.  Be sure to add an email address, and spend time adding pictures to the photos tab. 

4. Take Advantage of Features

Take advantage of the various features Facebook business pages have to offer. Clicking on the “Get Started” button under your default image displays multiple steps you can take to make the most of your page. Here are six worth trying:
  • Invite your friends.
  • Tell your fans.
  • Post status updates.
  • Promote this page on your website.
  • Set up your mobile phone. 

5. Play and Track

At this point, you have built and shared a Facebook page that, hopefully, accurately represents your business, brand, or company.  Play around with the page and see if you can discover any original ideas on how to present your business, brand, or company.
To measure how all these efforts are going along the way, make sure you take advantage of Facebook Insights by clicking the “View Insights” tab on the right-hand side of your Facebook page. This will allow you to see how many people have become fans of your page, or in Facebook terms, “Liked” your page. You can change the time frame to compare how many Likes you received on one day versus another. Also check out the insights tool for additional tracking information.

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