Why your business should have a Facebook fan page
Rebecca Bauer Ritz | Social Media | Sunday October 2 2011
Many times when I am meeting with a small business or startup and we are talking about their business online, I’ll ask if they have a Facebook fan page. Most, do not. They find the process confusing and don’t know where to start. Plus, its just one more thing to do on top of their long to-do list.
Why do you, as a small business or start-up need one? Check out these stats from Facebook:
- Facebook has more than 845 million active users (as of December 2011)
- 50% of active users log on to Facebook in any given day
- Average user spends more than 55 minutes per day on Facebook
Think about this: your clients are not going to log onto your website everyday, but more than half of all users log on to Facebook in any given day. That is over 400 million people you could potentially reach with a daily status message. Plus, a Facebook fan page offers these advantages:
1. Fan pages are visible to even those without a Facebook profile account. If you send a Twitter message or email with a link, anyone can view the page.
2. Fan pages are indexed outside of Facebook. Meaning, if someone does an online search of your company, this is one more link that will come up.
3. Not sure who your target market is? Facebook fan pages can help you figure that out. Each page keeps statistics of who your followers are and who is participating. It will tell you if they are male or female, their age range, where they are located and what language they speak.
4. With a regular Facebook profile you are limited to 5,000 friends. With a Facebook Fan Page the number of fans is unlimited. This might not be a huge thing if you are just starting out, but always plan for your growth.
5. You can further establish your brand. People do business with people they trust. Social media is all about building the trust over time and Facbook is a great way to do that.
Do you have a Facebook fan page? Has it helped your business?
Now that you have discovered why your small business or start-up should have a fan page, move onto my next article – How to create a Facebook Fan page.
Rebecca Bauer Ritz
Becca is the owner of Bauerhaus Design, Inc. and is passionate about helping small businesses build their brands.Comments
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Hi Rebecca,
Interesting article!
One of the companies I am involved with is a water cooler business. We are currently trying to decide whether this business will benefit from a FB page. We have a page currently with less than 20 fans and are wondering whether water coolers are cool enough for social media lol.
I can see it having advantages for fun/cool products/brands but wonder if time spent developing our FB page could be better spent elsewhere?
I think that http://www.facebook.com/BlendTec did an amazing job at creating buzz and gaining exposure for a blender that normally isn’t that exciting so i guess there is hope
Hi David -
You are right certain products are a little less certain on to how to promote on Facebook, but I certainly think it can be done. I think the key would be to make water coolers fun. For example, what about asking your fans for their best water cooler jokes? Or sharing info about where your water comes from? Or why it’s better than tap water? Or having a contest where fans have to submit a photo of them next to a water cooler and they win XX amount of free water coolers. Think of topics that are fun, educational and interactive. If you would like further help writing for Facebook, I now partner with a social media/marketing guru to offer several different package prices. Email me at becca@bauerhaus.com for more info.
This is an interesting topic and one that seems to come up all the time. I especially like point number 3 and I think that is one that is overlooked all the time. The data we can get from Facebook is pure marketing GOLD!
I have written a blog post covering the reasons why you should OR shouldn’t have your business on Facebook. I would be interested to see what you think:)
http://one1onemarketing.com.au/should-you-be-on-facebook/