How To Rock Your Business and Brand Using Only Facebook
While I am a huge advocate and believer in using multiple platforms to create valuable content to attract your target audience, most people who start a business whether that be a coaching business, direct sales opportunity or just launched a business as a freelancer or virtual assistant, are usually trying to work with free resources they already have and for most newbie solopreneurs, that will involve their personal Facebook account.
When I started out as an entrepreneur over 11 years ago there were not as many options as there are now. In some ways that was a good thing for it kept business building simple. Today, there are so many platforms it can be overwhelming and I am all for using what you have and blooming where you are planted.
I built my last online marketing business to a 6-figure per year income using only Facebook so it can be done but its important to also point out that using only Facebook should be a short term strategy while working to implement other long term, more evergreen strategies like a blog.
Marketing on Facebook can be a valuable tool when used the RIGHT way. Unfortunately 80% of the marketing I see is over the top sales-y, spammy, full of hype and to be honest borderline unethical. But the good news is that you can choose to operate your business more authentically that honors your values while inspiring others to work with you and that is the foundation of thriving business and brand.
Here are my top tips for effectively using Facebook:
Personal Facebook Page
I bet its safe to say, that your personal Facebook page is probably where you are connected with the most people, right?. Your close friends and family otherwise known as your "warm market". People you have a relationship established with but it may shock you to learn that the marjory of people in this network are NOT your target market.
There will be a handful of people who will support you and be willing to buy products from you, give you feedback and testimonials, hire you for your services but your next rock star business partner or high dollar client will probably not come from your personal Facebook page. You will need to venture outside of your personal page in order to attract the right audience but here are tips to help you leverage your personal page to its fullest:
1. Follow the rules.
In fact, it goes against Facebook’s terms and conditions to use your personal page for commercial gain but your personal page is a great place to share the foundation of what you do, to tell stories, your why, your passions and convictions.
A personal page is the perfect place to be just that...personal. To be real, authentic and tell stories that show people what we are going through in our own lives while inspiring at the same time.
Life and business is not all rainbows and roses so don't pretend that it is (no one is buying it any way). When you have a rough day, be real and transparent while ending it on a positive note. You will be amazed at how many people comment and reach out to you thanking you for being real because they sometimes feel alone in their own struggles.
I shared a real raw moment on my personal page and received a lot of engagement from those who were experiencing the same struggles.
2. Solve A Problem
As marketers its important to remember that we are problem solvers first. People care about their own struggles and want solutions to their own problems. When we consistently show ourselves as a problem solver, people will want to connect and do business with us more. Marketing is about building trust and influence. When those two things exist, people will buy.
Do you have a favorite tip or daily life hack that makes your life easier that you think others will value? Share it. Not only does it solve a problem and help others but it makes you a fun go to resource. I love to add cinnamon to my coffee before I brew it and add a teaspoon of organic coconut oil after I brew my coffee. I took a quick photo and shared it on my personal page and it generated a lot of fun engagement and conversations.
Do you love to cook, garden, know a lot about holistic living? Share your personal hobbies and beliefs to draw your network in while sharing your personal life. Give people memorable insight into who you are as a person first, not as a business owner. The right people for your business who do happen to be connected with you personally will be drawn into working with you organically because they see you as a valuable resource of information.
You can find lots of great tips, recipes and photos on Pinterest to share and give value BUT always, always, always, always give credit to where you got the photo if you are not using your own. Please do not be that person who shares someone else's work and doesn't give proper credit.
3. Share don’t sell.
Use your personal page to SHARE, not sell. This means go easy on the links and call to actions, share authentically while giving valuable information. Keep your posts genuine and authentic which means coming up with your own creative content and not copying someone else's. Those copy and paste posts that go viral on Facebook are definitely NOT the way to go as a marketer.
Just because you see another coach using her personal Facebook page as a way to launch her next product doesn’t mean you should too or you see 10 other people on your network marketing team all post the same company graphic doesn’t make it a good idea.
Being authentic always wins. Take your own photos of products and put a valuable tip with it leaving out any kind of “message me” “order here” “click here for more info” type verbiage. The moment people think you are sharing in order to get something out of it, they lose interest because there is an agenda behind it and a total joy kill. People love to buy but they hate being sold to so don't sell.
When I was a rep with doTERRA, I used interesting backgrounds to take my own photos and share the products.
In this post for example, I shared one of my favorite essential oils, Wild Orange.
• I shared HOW I love to use it - by diffusing
• I shared WHY I love to use it - it purifies the air and makes my home smell good
A simple post without trying to sell anything with links or "message me for more info". People who were interested messaged me and commented. When you give value daily through sharing, you will find that people are much more responsive than having it shoved down their throats or inbox.
When I first launched my coaching business, I stayed away from selling my services and instead shared my passion for helping others and taking people on a journey of what I was working on and creating.
A simple post sharing that I was working on a new blogging bootcamp as part of my coaching services and I had several people comment and message me for more info. My post was a strategic teaser of attraction marketing that generated curiosity from targeted prospects.
In this post I shared some personal struggles with social media and what I was doing about it and used it as an opportunity to share in a very subtle way that I have a coaching group and I simply tagged it. I didn't say "hey everyone come check out my coaching group I just started!".
Hard selling is such a turn off and there are so many other creative ways to market what we do that can lead people through their human nature of being curious without being that over bearing sales person.
4. Keep it personal.
The goal is to serve others and give them valuable info that will keep them interested, keep you in their newsfeed (this happens every time someone likes, comments or reads your posts. The Facebook algorithm is now tracking not only likes and comments but the amount of time a person spends reading your posts).
The more personable you are and the more value you give the more engaged your followers will be. Your personal page is not about what you sell, what you do or what you need, its about connecting with your audience.
• Love to cook? Share a favorite recipe (I see so many people posting pictures of the meal they made but don't include the how-to. Including the recipe will always generate more likes, comments and shares).
• Love to garden? Share a favorite tip like how to grow your own fresh organic mint and ways to use it.
• Love to read? Share the latest review of a book you finished reading. People are always looking for great books to read and want to hear from someone they know before buying it.
• Love yoga? Share some great tips to help a newbie get started.
• Have a strong spiritual faith? Give inspiration and share how God turned one of your biggest messes into a positive message to inspire someone struggling with their own mess.
The valuable tips you share will attract like minded people into your space, people who want to build relationships with YOU and yes, some of these connections will lead to curiosity about what you do.
I am introvert who thrives on humor and sarcasm. Not only do I love to inspire others and give valuable tips that can help solve problems, but I like to allow my snarky side to shine through. When people see my content on their newsfeed I want it to be out of the box and different. I don't want to post what everyone else is posting. I don't want to be talking about what everyone else is talking about. Copy cat marketing is not my jam so I am always searching for unique content.
This post generated over 188 likes, 33 comments and 18 shares. Stay true to your voice, your personality and your brand.
5. Build relationships.
Your personal page is just that, personal. Use it to build strong relationships. Don't message massive amounts of people asking them to try your products, check out your latest coaching package or join your opportunity. Use private messages to have sincere conversations about their family, how things are going at work and use these conversations to uplift and encourage them. Make them feel valued, that you have a vested interest in getting to know them without wanting anything.
As relationships are built and you feel what you offer can help them they will be much more receptive and open to it because they connect with and trust you.
10 A Day Challenge
For the next two weeks, be committed to messaging 10 people per day from your Facebook list with the intention to get to know them. Use the F.O.R.M method . Get to the know the people you are connected with. Find out how you can serve them, not sell to them. When people ask what is new with you, you can mention all things that are going on in your life "am working hard at my business, playing the role of soccer mom and just finished a great book". If they ask more about your business, share your passion for helping others and see where the conversation leads.
99% of the conversations we have should come from a place of planting seeds with people, not hard selling them in one conversation (which rarely ever happens any way).
Have intentional conversations every day with 10 people over the next 2 weeks and see if this doesn't make a huge shift in how you view your business and how more purposeful your business feels to have meaningful conversations with others.
Building relationships is an essential skill every marketer needs to master to build a thriving business. When people like, know and trust someone they will buy products and services. Technology will never change that.
6. Use your story.
Your story is the most powerful marketing tool you have, use it. There is no one like you, who has been where you have been, has the same life changing lessons learned. Use it to your advantage. Leverage it to stand out. Be vulnerable and authentic. Share short stories on your page that will inspire others. This makes you relatable and gives your network a deep connection with you.
I have learned that there is great value in being open about the hardships of being an entrepreneur and it never ceases to amaze me the emails and messages I receive from people who are so thankful that they are not alone, to connect with someone who has the courage to portray the journey for what it is, a blessing that is also a lot of hard work filled with sucky moments. Trying to portray entrepreneurship as a full time glamorous lifestyle working pool-side every day gives people a false sense of what its actually like.
A post by Brené Brown several years ago inspired me to write my own love letter to myself. One day I felt okay being vulnerable and sharing part of my journey. The response I received from it was very touching.
Share more from your heart, as a real every person, with the focus on what drives you to do what you do and share less about what you do. From the great words of Simon Sinek, "People won't buy what you do but they will buy why you do it".
Those that are having the same struggles will see you as a trusted resource and people who are looking for people to do business with are looking for people they can trust. They are searching for someone who understands them. Posting all the time about what you sell, what you do or how fast your network marketing company is growing does NOTHING to make your network trust YOU. They can work with any life coach, join any skin care company…but why should they work with YOU?
That is the question that you have to answer every time you post and the way you do that is to show people with value. Embrace your uniqueness and master the art of telling YOUR story.
To sum it all up and tie it with a bow, a personal page is the place to be personable and take people on a journey by being YOU.
Facebook Business Fan Page
Now that we have covered the basic do's and don'ts of a personal Facebook page, the right way to market a business is with a Facebook fan page. Here are some tips to get you started:
1. Your page should be branded around you so for the love of Pete, do NOT name your fan page after your direct sales/network marketing company like Susie Jo, Java House Coffee Rep. Personally brand you and weave your business into it with your content
OR
Call your fan page something and not include your name like Warrior Fitness Chick. Are people going to search for you like that?? No. They will search for you by your name and without your name in the tittle of your fan page it won't come up.
2. Link your business page to your personal profile. Those that are curious about what you do will see it on your personal profile and want to stalk you more on your business page.
3. A business fan page is indexed by Google and searchable unlike you personal page. Can you say “attracting a GLOBAL audience”!
4. You can run a targeted Facebook ad and boost a post that gives value, host a webinar, share blog content, etc. A $10 targeted ad can reach 2,000 new people in ONE day. You can't do that from your personal page.
5. Click HERE to read my detailed blog post about how to create a fan worthy fan page and my Facebook ad strategy to build it.
Facebook Groups
Facebook groups can be a great place to network, meet new people who are your target market and give value. They can also suck up a lot of time and energy so its important to use Facebook groups wisely:
1. Find groups that fit your target market. Are you a health coach? Find groups that are centered around meal planning. Are you knowledgeable about holistic living? Find groups where you can help educate others. Are you a mom who has great organization and home schooling skills? Find groups with moms who need your expertise. Are you a VA who specializes in email marketing and other business systems? Find groups with your target market where you can offer some free quick tips to attract new clients.
2. Follow the group rules. Don’t spam. give selflessly and be an active valuable member. Silently stalking a group does not showcase your expertise or help you stand out from the crowd. Be genuine with your engagement. One of the strategies that is an immediate turn off for me is to see someone hop around from group to group posting the same picture and copy. That is sleazy, lazy marketing that is not fooling any one.
3. Don’t join more groups than you can manage. You can't possibly be in 50+ groups and get anything from it or give real value. You are only one person with so many hours in a day. Find 3-4 groups that are very targeted for your goals, with the right target market and be active daily. Check in quickly each day, join the discussions and connect with people in the group who are also active and share value.
If at any time the group does not seem helpful or the energy is not what you are looking for, leave it and research other groups. I have joined groups that from the title and description seemed like they would be a great fit and once in the group it was NOT what I was looking for. No shame in doing a group clean up once a month to keep from spreading yourself too thin. It will be a lot of trial and error to find the right groups.
4. Worth your time. I will be frank here: there are a lot of Facebook groups that are being used as a primary marketing funnel by the creator of the group to up-sell their own agenda. There is nothing wrong with this strategy but is the energy of the group one of primary personal gain for the creator/admin or is it one of collaboration over competition? Is there a lot of caddy drama? Is the vibe supportive or negative?
A Facebook group that has more rules than a federal prison while the admin is the exception to every rule so she can promote herself every day is not the type of group to spend your valuable time in.
Looking for more tips to leverage Facebook groups, check out my detailed guest blog post on the Mogul Mom.
Facebook Fan Pages
One of the biggest tools people overlook is networking on other fan pages. They can be GOLD for your business and help you connect with brand new people outside of your circle while showing your expertise on a publicly Google indexed page.
• First step is to identify where is your target market hanging out? What fan pages are they likely to not only like but be active on?
• First place to look is on fan pages that you already follow. Birds of a feather flock together. If you are passionate about healthy living, safer products, organic living, a tech geek, lover of travel, amateur chef, personal development junkie, your ideal client is likely hanging out in the same places.
• Look for new pages where your target audience could be hanging out. See how much engagement is on the fan page. You want to focus on pages that are active, posting great content consistently to like, comment on and share on your page.
• Check in with these pages daily and join in on the conversations. Offer value, be helpful and sincere. Never use someone else’s page to sell or post your links. That would be beyond tacky. Be a valuable resource, support others, be encouraging, share parts of your story to show others that you understand their struggle. Never lead from a place of having an agenda. People will see right through you. Always be 100% servant driven with the goal of helping others.
Bonus Tip: You can choose several pages to “see first” in your newsfeed so you never miss a post by those pages and can stay on top of conversations. There is a limit to how many you can see at the top of your newsfeed so choose wisely. As you can see here from Kate Northrup's fan page, from the "Liked" drop down it gives the option to "See First". This will boost all content posted to the fan pages you want to follow to the top of your newsfeed to not only remind you to network on those pages but to keep them easily accessible.
Be ethical. I would hope this would go without saying but am going to say it anyway, ensure that you are leading from a place of integrity and ethics. If you are a Beachbody health coach, for example, you would not like the fan page of another Beachbody coach and start networking on her page trying to build relationships with people she is working hard to give value to.
OR
If you are a life coach, you would not join the group of another life coach and pop in to talk about your latest program {unless there are specific promotional posts asking you to share that type of content} or respond to questions with the intent to lead people into your marketing funnel.
We are what we attract and we will always reap what we sow. The way we conduct our businesses, the vibration we give to the world is what we can expect to receive and the type of results we can expect to attract. Be supportive and uplift others without any expectation and I promise the Universe will deliver blessings into your life. I am a firm believer that there is enough success to go around for everyone so there is no need to try to piggy back off of someone else’s hard work.
Building a business and brand on Facebook can generate great results while you work on a longer term strategy for creating content for your business like a blog, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube, etc. Need help better defining your personal brand and marketing strategy? Let's dive into Branding: A Love Story together↴
If you found these tips valuable I would love to here from you so be sure to leave me a comment and share with other creative women who are rocking their businesses xo
April Williams is the #CreativeMomista of two boys • Storyteller • Coffee Addict • Woman Warrior Of God • Texas Country Girl • Creative Expressive • A vintage soul passionate about living a simple life with a modern approach to business and branding
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