Creating a customised Facebook page for a small business

Anyone who has the slightest interest in SEO or building a web presence has to consider social media sooner or later. It's imperative to not just create the accounts, but understand the platforms in order to use them effectively. Here are some tips to get you started on Facebook.

The platform

Facebook is where families and friends go to keep in touch with each other. It's the mainstream, but businesses are quickly learning how to latch on to that to build fan bases for their products. To make your Facebook page work you need to be committed to actually using it as one of the means of communicating with your clients and potential clients. If you don't, it will help a bit with SEO but apart from that it won't do much. Be aware of the functionality Facebook provides. In addition to custom ads to drive traffic to your page, it also has a range of apps that add functionality from discussions to ecommerce.

Getting started

Before you start, here are some things to consider: what you want to do with the page, what you want to do on the page, who you're aiming at and how. To create the page, go to Settings. At the bottom of the page you will see a link, "Create a page." Choose which type you want from the list of options, then fill in the details. Now that you've got your shiny new page up, customize it. If you're not a graphic designer and you want to do this yourself, use My FB Covers to make your images. Theirs are the right dimensions by default. You will need a big banner and a profile image, which will sit to the left of every post you make. This is mine. I made the images myself. The quality of the images can make or break a page; if the image is faded or distorted, it makes you look sloppy and you may lose business over it. 720 x266 px is the correct size.

Layout

The layout of Facebook pages keeps changing and while customisation options are available, it's best to keep it simple if you're only using it for basic marketing. What you'll typically see is empty blocks that you fill with status updates, images, and videos. Custom tabs and apps provide the extra functionality, and you can swap them around using the settings button on the right hand side of the page. Don't add tabs and fancy features for the sake of it; there has to be a purpose for every app you choose or you'll end up with a load of apps and possibly extra content from your visitors, which will give you more work to do for no good reason.

Content

Keep the images at a reasonable size, no more than 300px wide or Facebook will distort them. Fancy features are all well and good, but it's ultimately content and engagement that make or break a fan page on Facebook. You need to commit to it; failure to talk to people who post on your page might lose you business. Be sure to answer any comments made and engage with the people who leave them. If they don't do business with you now, they may do so later. Be sure to visit the pages of people in related trades; mutual promotion can make all the difference if business is slow. Make complimentary comments and be a good neighbour. All this will work in your favour.

If someone comes on and rants about a problem they have with you or your service, be calm, courteous, and work towards a resolution. It makes you look good to be seen to deal well with a conflict. If, then, someone complains that an item is faulty or hasn't arrived, you can offer to replace it and add a goodwill gesture, perhaps in the form of a voucher, partial discount, or associated item. This will build goodwill and trust among your viewers and get you more business. Whatever you do, don't get defensive. Trolls can be blocked and their posts deleted, but if you can turn a bad situation into a better one with stellar customer service, you will gain a lot from it.

Facebook works best when treated as an opportunity to chat with friends and meet new people. Don't just use it as a noticeboard; if this is where your potential clients are, create a space to mingle with them. You can measure your success not just with the number of followers and fans, but by the number of conversations you have that end up as business enquiries.

Guest Post by Wendy Cockcroft

Wendy Cockcroft is a freelance web designer and front end developer based in Manchester, England, with an interest in graphic design, content writing, and and social media. As a digital rights activist, she sometimes writes guest posts for Techdirt.