5 Reasons Your Business Needs to be on Facebook

October 20, 2014 // Harry Kierbow

OK, you’ve done it. You’ve started your small business. You have a great product. You’re making sales. Things are going well. But you can always use more customers, right? How can you continue to grow your reach?

Increasingly, social media, and Facebook in particular, is becoming the answer to this question. The number of businesses that say Facebook is critical or important to their success has increased by 75%. Your business needs to have a presence on Facebook. “Why?” you say. “How?” you say. Just read on, my friend. Just read on.

Why Facebook?

One of the keys to successful social media marketing—or any type of marketing, really—involves figuring out where your target market is and then going to them. With over 1.15 billion active members (that’s billion- with a b), Facebook is the biggest party on the block. Still not convinced? Here are 5 facts that will convince you of the business value of Facebook.

Internet marketing research firm EMarketer estimates that approximately 51% of all internet users visit Facebook at least once a month.
47% of Americans active on social networks say that Facebook has the greatest impact on their buying behavior. Last year that number was 24%.
23% of Facebook users check their accounts 5 or more times daily. Break out the abacus and let’s do that math. 23% of 1.15 billion is… carry the 5… oh yeah, that’s 264,500,000 people accessing their account multiple times per day. Every. Single. Day.
80% of American social networkers listed Facebook as their network of choice when they connected with a brand.
In 2012, 77% of B2C companies acquired a customer through Facebook.

So, now you’re convinced, right? Of course you are. You’re ready to get started! It’s go time! How do you get started, though? Here are 5 steps to get you on your way.

Step 1: Create your business page.

Make a Facebook business page. A Facebook business page has a number of advantages.

It looks much more professional. Your credibility will suffer when posts about your business prowess are sandwiched between a picture of your dog and, well, a sandwich.
Search engines index content on Facebook, helping search engine optimization.
Fans can “Like” your business page, giving you street cred in the social media world.
A business page gives you free analytics tools from Facebook. These tools will allow you to track your post progress and will give valuable marketing statistics.

If you haven’t already created a Facebook business page, you can do it here.

Step 2: Get to know your audience.

Now it’s time to think like your customer. Who will make up your target market? Who is most likely to want what you provide? What do they like? When are they active on Facebook? As a successful business, you will probably have an idea about the answer to these questions, or you can find this information through trial and error but there’s also a great free tool you can use, Facebook Insights. Experiment with your audience to see when they are online and what they like. Be sure to measure the results so you can track your progress and develop your goals.

Step 3: Develop your goals.

Nice segue, huh? You’ll never be successful without first defining success. What is your overall goal with Facebook? If you’re trying to increase traffic to your website, think mid-day, mid-week. Link-shortening service Bit.ly saw substantially higher click-through rates for links posted between 1 and 4 pm EST, with the highest rates coming on Wednesdays at 3 pm EST. If you want to grow your page through social sharing, consider posting on Saturdays. Marketing blog Kissmetrics found that Facebook shares increase on Saturdays at noon ET and 7 pm ET. With your team, come to a shared goal and then experiment to find the best way to meet it.

Step 4: Develop and implement a plan.

After finding a shared goal, it’s time to create a plan to help you meet that goal. Determine the type of content you will post and when you will post it. Find a voice for your business and stick to it. Map out your plan and decide who will implement which parts. Then put your plan into action. Monitor the results of your efforts in real time and make changes when necessary.

Step 5: Look good while doing it.

Show a little skin. Wave your little hat around. Sing a little song. Dance a little… well you get it. Show some personality. This is a chance to put a human face to your business. Try to be helpful and entertaining. Ask questions and encourage conversation. Reply to comments to show you’re paying attention. While you still need to be professional, this is a network and an audience that won’t mind if you loosen that tie and let your guard down just a little bit.

OK, so as you I think you can see, Facebook offers a tremendous opportunity for small businesses to easily advertise to the masses. Now, I’ve got to get out of here and get this blog posted on Facebook.

Looking for more information on Facebook marketing? Check out our free downloadable guide.

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Harry Kierbow

Harry Kierbow is the Director of Social Media for Commissions Inc (CINC), a real estate technology and marketing company. He's played professionally on Facebook (and other social networks) for more than 7 years now, managing campaigns for brands (both big and small) and individuals (also both big and small). Universally regarded as the greatest ice hockey goalie to ever come from Griffin, GA (by his mom at least), you can find Harry between the pipes on the ice rinks of Georgia (yes, there is more than one) or playing with his 2 kids when he's not perfecting social media ads or binging true crime documentaries on Netflix. Connect with Harry on LinkedIn @HarryKierbow.