Posted by Tom Krengel
on 06/30/09
Why are Fan Pages the best for businesses?
Creating a fan page is a great way to present your business on Facebook and it is the most viral of the three types of Facebook pages (Profile or personal, Group, and Fan). When someone becomes a fan of your business, that information is posted on their wall, which is a friendly introduction of your business to their friends too. Moreover, when fans interact with the Fan Page, news and events that are linked to your page are passed on to their friends via News Feed. One of the most valuable features is that businesses can send "updates" about new offerings (products and services) and content to fans and the brand becomes even more visible.
Fan Pages also engender more SEO credit because the pages are public. Logins are not required to view Fan Pages, so search engines can index the page. Your page will include your website's address so you can receive facebook.com link credit. When social networking platforms, like Facebook, are linked to a company's web page, the Fan Pages can channel more prospects throughout the network.
Lastly, Facebook Fan Pages are easy to set up and manage. Facebook Fan Pages also give you access to data that can be used to target and monitor your prospects online. This information is extremely valuable in courting potential customers.
5 Tips for Designing an Effective Fan Page:
- Be Authentic: Don't simply try to push your products and services on people. Concentrate on providing professional advice and valuable tips. Start by establishig a trusted relationship with 'fans'.
- Provide interesting content: Frequently update content so updates constantly appear on walls of members.
- Tell your story: Share how the business started, what made/makes it successful, how it is unique, what is going on now, etc.
- Special Offers: Freebies and giveawys are viral. Offering fans the chance to win a prize or giveaway, regardless of size or value, will keep them coming back and will tempt their friends to visit as well.
- Get a vanity URL: Once you have amassed 25 fans, you are eligible to register for a vanity URL ( http://www.facebook.com/YOURVANITYURL ). This helps with branding by putting your business name right in the web address.