Anyone who runs a website knows that establishing a strong online presence is vital – especially for business owners. The way you present yourself online can have a huge impact on the traffic and conversions your site receives, which means that a weak presence can have a detrimental effect.
When it comes to building your online brand, Facebook can be one of the most valuable tools at your disposal. This social media platform gives you a level of access to potential customers that is hard to find elsewhere. What’s more, it offers a wide variety of marketing options that you can take advantage of.
In this post, we’ll discuss the different ways you can market your business via Facebook, and help you get started. Let’s get to it!
The Power of Facebook Marketing for Small Businesses
By now, you’re probably aware that crafting a strong online presence is essential – but what does that actually mean? Put simply, your online presence refers to the way you present yourself and your brand. A strong presence will help your business appear more professional, and may increase conversions and traffic as a result.
Your company’s website plays a central role in establishing that presence. Businesses with well-designed and useful websites tend to appear more credible to users. Visitor trust has a significant influence on how many conversions you receive, and the internet is now the first place most people look to learn about a new company.
However, just having a website isn’t enough. Fortunately, social media is another excellent way of getting attention and promoting trust. Creating and maintaining active profiles is a must, along with conducting frequent customer interactions.
Social media platforms also make marketing your business easier. Put simply, social media is one of the best ways to reach your desired audience. In fact, recent research has shown that most people in every age group use at least one social media site, and 30% of young people say they engage with a brand on social media at least once a month.
Although there are a number of popular platforms, Facebook is by far the most popular social media website. In January 2018, 68% of Americans used Facebook regularly. Facebook also boasts 1.37 billion daily active users – that’s a lot of potential customers. What’s more, the platform offers a range of advertising tools that provide a convenient way to craft a strong online presence.
4 Ways to Use Facebook as a Marketing Tool
It’s no surprise that more and more small businesses are turning to Facebook to market their content, since the platform is both easily accessible and quite flexible. In the next few sections, we’ll talk you through four of the key ways you can use Facebook to market your business and expand your online presence.
1. Direct Response Advertising
Direct response advertising involves sending out targeted messages that encourage your audience to take specific actions. That could be to buy a product, read your blog post, refer a friend, or anything else that’s relevant to your business’ goals.
Facebook’s targeting features, along with its large user base, enables those opting for direct response advertising to gain traction quickly. The platform offers a number of advertisement options, including carousel ads, lead ads, and dynamic product ads.
While the process of creating your advertisements will vary depending on their types, there are a number of elements you’ll always want to include. For instance, direct response advertisements should be targeted, measurable, and trackable. This can be achieved through the use of strong Calls To Action (CTAs).
2. Social Posting
As we mentioned earlier, one of the main goals when using any form of social media as a marketing tool is to build a strong online presence. This means having a profile on a variety of key platforms, and keeping it up-to-date. This is a smart way to increase your audience’s trust and loyalty.
You can also use your social pages to interact directly with customers. This can further build their loyalty to you as a company, and make them more likely to convert at a later date. It helps to take a look at the social profiles of some of the world’s most well-known brands – you’ll find that they are well-maintained, and also provide fun (yet effective) customer service.
What’s more, using social media scheduling tools like Sprout Social is an excellent way to keep your content up to date. These tools also typically enable you to schedule content in advance, freeing up valuable time.
3. Detailed Audience Analysis
One of the biggest advantages Facebook has over other social media platforms is the amount of audience data it provides. You’ll get access to a wealth of information on the site’s users, from relationship statuses to careers. This means you’ll have everything you need to find and target your desired audience.
Using tools provided by the platform, such as the Facebook pixel, will enable you to gather detailed information on existing and potential customers. This in turn can help you develop extremely targeted ads, and measure the success of your marketing campaigns.
4. Link Sharing Options
Unlike some other social platforms, the options for linking on Facebook are pretty much endless. The platform makes it easy to share whatever content you like to your page, and link out to your website and other key places.
Sharing links to your own content is a vital part of Facebook marketing, particularly when considering Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Linking is an important factor in the way search engines determine your site’s rankings, since it helps them determine whether your site (or social media profile) is a credible source.
It’s also important to consider the appearance of your links. Long, complicated URLs can make your audience wary, and discourage clicks. On the other hand, tools like Pretty Links enable you to create shortened URLs that help bolster your presence on social media.
