Optimize your Facebook Page

January 26, 2011/in Facebook/by Chrissanne

I offer a tip to local businesses each day in a group called the Lakeland Business “Lead”ers. I try to offer ideas to help businesses leverage the power of Facebook to enhance and grow their Internet presence. If you are a business professional in Lakeland and want an opportunity to network with other people in Lakeland via Facebook, there are other wonderful professionals within the group offering Referrals, Leads and Excellent information. Please feel free to join us!

Today, I wanted to talk about how you can get the most from your Facebook Page using some simple strategies. Just having a page is not enough! All of the elements available within Facebook are there for a reason. Understanding those reasons and using the features to your benefit is just a smart way to leverage Social Media for your Business!

So, to optimize your Facebook Page, start with these simple (but powerful) suggestions:

Take a look at your “About” Box and make sure you have optimized this to its full potential. Consider changing this copy frequently, to match promotions or offers your business has. Don’t forget to… add your website URL and make sure to include the http:// (to make it a live link!)
Under all of your “Fans” there is a “Share” button. When you click that (or one of your fans does) the information that populates in the link on the person’s profile will be pulled directly from your “Info” tab in your Page. Make sure you make this content compelling content to make your page more inviting to others. So, Make the Copy of your Info Tab Count!
Upload Videos to your Page! When you upload a video directly using the “Upload Video” tab, anyone viewing your video will have the opportunity to “like” your page. A button will be visible while they are viewing your video which will make this easy for them! Imagine the opportunity this exposure will provide! To see a local example of how a video will appear and enable the viewer to like, view http://www.facebook.com/photographersniche – go down below the fans and the pictures to find the video!

Next Tip: Creating a Tab for FAN-ONLY content!

Chrissanne Long is a Media and Marketing Consultant and Partner with Marketing System Blueprints, an interactive Marketing agency that offers Search Engine Optimization, Video, Mobile and Search Engine Marketing services for local businesses seeking to improve their online visibility and brand awareness in Lakeland, FL and other local markets.

Using Lists on Facebook

January 24, 2011/in Facebook/by Chrissanne

Using Lists to Categorize your “Friends”

Today’s reality is, that the Facebook meaning of “friends” has transcended it’s traditional meaning. Many people are afraid of connecting with people they barely (or don’t) know. However, the power in Facebook is in the ability to connect and build real relationships beyond the traditional “hitting the pavement” methods required in the past. If you are being asked to become friends with people you met at a networking event, but want to have certain privacy settings for some “friends” and different settings for your real friends, you will want to use lists!

Step 1. Click “Friends” in the menu bar on the left (under your profile picture)
Step 2. Top right, click “Edit Friends”
Step 3. Top Right, click “Create a List” (assuming you have no lists yet)
Step 4. Name the List (Lakeland Leaders Group, or High School Friends or Family
Step 5. Select the friends you want to add to this list (You Can also search by name)
Step 6. When you have selected the people you want to add to this list, Click “Create List”

You are Done! The next step will show you how to adjust the privacy settings for each list. But Creating and adding the friends to these new lists is a pretty big job, so I will give you time to complete that and then, next weekend, I will tell you how to take the next step! As always, let me know if you have any questions!

Think Like a Customer, Get More Business

January 11, 2011/in Business Strategies, Local Internet Marketing/by Chrissanne

More and more studies are indicating that people Search before they Buy. Think about when you are shopping in a retail clothing store. Do you want the sales clerk to swarm around you while you are browsing? Do you prefer to search on your own, without the stress of the hard sell to interrupt your shopping experience? Marketing your brick and mortar business is very similar. When the shopper is ready, by all means, you should be there, ready to answer questions and assist her in making her purchases. But how can you tell when a customer is ready?

The Great Divide from WebVisible on Vimeo.

With the Internet, you can’t! That is why you need to anticipate where they will look when they are ready to buy, and make it simple for them to contact you and communicate their needs to you. But where are they looking? Online! Specifically, the search engines. According to a Nielsen study, 82% of searchers search online before they make a purchase! This means that you don’t know who they are, or where they are or what they need, until they find you! If you don’t think local businesses should be spending their advertising dollars on Internet marketing, I ask that you watch this documentary of real businesses who think the same way you do, and real consumers who think differently! It’s not a about what you feel comfortable with, it’s about getting your business in front of your customers. Putting your ears and eyes in their world, listening to what they want and being ready for them on their terms. But don’t take my word for it – Watch the video and then tell me what you think!