(Writing Portfolio) How to Make Your Local Business Stand Out on Facebook

Facebook has over 2 billion active users worldwide. Having access to even a fraction of that many potential customers is nothing to ignore.

So how do you make your Facebook local business page stand out from the competition? No worries, we’ve got you covered. Keep reading to learn how.

Why Do People Follow Brands on Facebook?

Before we get into how to make your business stand out on Facebook, it’s important to know why individuals follow and like business pages in the first place.

While it’s true that people who follow brands on Facebook are more likely to buy from them, that’s not why they follow. It’s to learn more about you. Here are the main reasons people click follow on Facebook local business pages.

Discounts and Specials

Most of the people that follow brands on Facebook are interested in some kind of perk. They don’t expect them every day but offering one every so often will keep them as members of your community.

Loyalty

Customers who enjoy your products and services offline want to engage online as well. They want to show their loyalty and support. Treat them with coupons and discounts, and they’ll be some of your biggest fans.

Ask Questions

In today’s internet-based society, people prefer reaching out to ask questions online. It’s faster and more convenient than calling. This way they can react when it’s convenient for them and their schedule.

Recommendations from Others

When someone likes or shares a Facebook local business page, many of their friends will see it too. Some people will even post about their positive experience with your business and recommend it to their friends. This is the electronic version of word of mouth advertising.

Updates and News

If you host regular events or are in the entertainment industry, such as a musician, use your page to announce showtimes and dates. Fans will follow your page to find out what’s going on. If they show interest on Facebook or say they will be attending, their friends will find out too.

Like-minded Conversation

People connect with others who share similar passions and interests through Facebook pages as well. It gives them the chance to share and chat about things they may not have in common with anyone in their physical world.

Making the Most of Your Facebook Local Business Page

The abundance of users on Facebook makes the need to stand out in a crowded market important. Making fans feel welcome, confident in your brand, and interested in what you have to say takes some effort but is well worth it. Here are some key components that will make your page shine.

You’ll need to be logged in as the administrator on your page before you’ll be able to make these updates and changes though.

Create a Custom URL

When you sign up for a business page, the URL you have will contain a bunch of random numbers and letters. It’s easier for followers to identify with an URL that matches your business name.

Once your page has 25 likes, you’re eligible to make this change. It only takes a few clicks to do.

About Your Business: Profile Fields

Let the world know who you are, what you do, and when you do it. Facebook makes this easy through the About section of your page. Click on the About link to get to the profile fields.

Make sure and fill out all of the fields that you can, the more, the better. There are options for business information, contact information, team members, your story, and product information. If you’re a restaurant, you’ll find an option to add your menu in this section too.

Call to Action Button

Facebook lets you add a call-to-action button on the top left of your Facebook local business page. You’ll want to make sure and set this up. This particular linking option is an excellent way to let your fans know how to buy your products or services.

Call-to-action buttons make it easy for your fans to contact you, shop on your website, order food, or book services. You can choose the destination URL that your call-to-action button links to. To add one, click the “Add a Button” option below your cover photo and fill out the required information.

Add Media: Photos and Video

Posts and updates with engaging images get 94% more views than those without one. You know the old saying, a picture tells a thousand words?

In our world today, attention spans keep decreasing because of information overload. Including an image attracts attention quickly. And let’s face it, plain text can be kind of dull. Use colorful and high-quality photos.

Images related to the topic you are posting about are best. Infographics are a great way to distill a lot of information down in an exciting way. They also transfer that information to your reader in less time.

Your fans will enjoy seeing what’s going on in your company too. Include photos and videos of behind the scene action and company events on your Facebook local business page.

Images that get shared the most are the ones that connect with the viewer on an emotional level. Want to make some stunning graphics for Facebook? Canva is a free image creation tool for those without Photoshop skills.

Your Profile Image

If you have an established logo, use it for your profile image. In some industries, such as for real estate agents and consultants, use a photo of yourself here. Aim to be recognizable and consistent with your branding.

Profile images should be 170 x 170 pixels. Keep in mind that Facebook crops them into a circle shape on posts and in ads, so keep the edges clear of essential elements.

Your Cover Photo

Your cover photo is the first thing seen when landing on your page. It also pops up when hovering over your profile picture anywhere on Facebook. Take time to create the most effective cover photo that you can.

Your cover photo’s size should be 851 x 315 pixels and less than 100 kilobytes. According to the Facebook guidelines, it can’t be misleading or infringe upon any copyrights. Stick to colors that match your brand and include a central focal point.

Facebook has recently added the ability to add a video to your cover. The video file needs to be at least 820 x 426 pixels and between 20 and 90 seconds long. This is a prime opportunity to give visitors a glimpse into your business on your Facebook local business page.

Also, include a description with a call-to-action for when users view it directly. Experiment with cover images and videos to test which kinds of images your visitors respond to best.

Regular Posting

Not only is regular blogging important, so is posting updates on Facebook. Post often to encourage interaction with your page. This routine will help you stay in the forefront of your customer’s minds too.

Add variety to your posts with:

• Updates from your blog
• Inspirational quotes
• Funny memes
• Infographics
• Educational material
• Polls
• Fan’s success stories
• Provide local knowledge
• Product offerings

Follow the 80/20 rule in your posting schedule. Share promotional updates only 20% of the time.

Build Your Community

The most successful Facebook local business pages don’t shout “Buy Me!” all the time, they have conversations with their community. Genuine interaction humanizes your brand.

Some ideas for building community and personally connecting with your audience are:

• Answer questions and acknowledge your fans.
• Create Facebook events to establish your expertise.
• Hold Facebook Live streams and invite people to attend.

Interaction is extremely important. In fact, with the recent algorithm changes at Facebook, interaction determines how often followers see the post in their feed. Over time, building trust through your Facebook page will end in more sales. It’s all about building relationships.

Post at the Right Time

Check your Facebook insights to find out when your fans are most active. To do this, click on the Insights tab at the top of your page. Then click on the Posts link to the left.

If you’re posting when your followers are not online, your posts are going to get buried in their feed. If this happens, they won’t see them.

Try posting at various times when your audience is active. Next, track your engagement to find out the ultimate time to post. Keep an eye on your Google Analytics to see how many of these engagements result in visits to your website or blog.

The Bottom Line: Value and Relationships

It all boils down to providing value and connecting with people. In a world of electronic communication, establishing trust is essential. Let your audience know how you can help, but don’t force it down their throats.

Set up your Facebook local business page and follow through with the relationship building techniques above. You’ll gain adoring fans that will want to buy what you offer.

One final tip, Facebook is continually changing its algorithms. Stay familiar with the changes to maximize visits to your page and avoid penalties for not following the rules.

Have you made any of these updates to your Facebook local business page? If so, what kind of results have you seen?

 

Need SEO content that gets results? Order blog posts and content today! See our writing portfolio for more writing samples.