It would seem that nowadays everyone is talking about social media sites such as Facebook Twitter and MySpace.
As you can expect this trend is going to continue with Facebook remaining at the top of the tree.
Since its launch in February 2004 Facebook has become the largest social media site in the world and to date and has around 600 million active subscribers.
Social media marketing has become a very powerful tool in the online marketing arsenal, therefore it is up to the marketer to use it to its full potential.
In this article I would like to share with you a few tips on how I think you can make Facebook work for you.
Facebook like many social media sites has an etiquette that should be adhered to in order to get the best results.
For example Facebook should never be used to promote or sell products.
It should be used solely for networking and gaining contacts.
Consider Facebook like an online party.
You want to be sociable, informative and likable just like a regular party.
You wouldn't arrive at a regular party with a billboard attached to you would you? People would see this as pushy and probably steer well away from you.
The same can be said for Facebook.
Profile pages are important.
Your friends or potential leads want to know a bit about you, this will make them feel at ease as they will not think of you as a complete stranger.
Keep the 'About Me' section brief and to the point and include a link to other websites/blogs where they can find out more information about you if they wish to.
Include your hobbies and interests this will enable you to have a connection with these people.
Photographs- A photograph can say a thousand words and portraying the right image will go a long way to helping you market your business.
Make sure your profile picture shows you as being professional, friendly and approachable.
You want people to feel they can contact you.
Having a photo of yourself lounging on the sofa or behaving like a jerk does not look good and will make leads feel that you are not professional in your work.
Friends that you add to your page should be carefully targeted.
It is important that if you are an online business you are targeting the right people.
You do not want to add just anyone as your networking efforts will be wasted.
Facebook provides you with all the tools needed to target your potential clients.
By searching a particular category you will find people interested in your niche or business.
These are the people you should concentrate your efforts on.
Connect with them and show them you are interested in the same things as them.
This will enable you to make contact and get a conversation started.
Creating a group will allow you to open up another channel of communication.
The more people get to see you the more likely they are to want to listen to your message.
You will start to become real.
Make sure that you are providing 'value' to your group by including information, videos, How to's etc.
this will show your members that you know what you are talking about and that they can trust you.
These 5 tips will allow you to create relationships for your business that you can then send to other websites or capture pages that will then sell your product.
Remember to show your leads that you care and show an interest in what they have to say.
They will be more open to your offers or products if they consider you to be a friend and not a spammer.