So, last week we talked about why your small business should be on Facebook. There are simply no more excuses. But I promised to give you some of the bare bones basics, and I’m definitely a woman of my word. Today we’re going to discuss how to build a USEFUL Small Business Facebook Page. Which is way more effective than just quickly flitting through the basic technique. If you go the extra mile with initial set up, your Facebook page should be much easier to find. Ultimately this will be more useful to any potential clients down the road.

I even made a dummy Facebook Business page while trying to put together this post regarding how to build a USEFUL Small Business Facebook Page. I find having visual aids when dealing with technology is super helpful. While you can create pages on your mobile device, I think it will honestly be easier on a desktop. I will also provide instructions regarding where you can find this content to edit if you already have been proactive enough to create a Facebook page.

How to Build a USEFUL Small Business Facebook Page

The Mechanics of Creating a Business Page

First just pull up Facebook in your browser after logging into your personal account. If you don’t have one, now is the time to create it. After this on the lower left-hand side you’ll notice a tab labeled Pages. Select that one.

At this point it will bring up a list of any pages you have. If you’re just starting out, you’ll select Create Page.

To start out you’ll need to select which category your Facebook page will fall into. There are six different ones.

• Local Business or Place: This is for businesses who have a physical location and actual store front (not virtual). If you have a traditional small business that the public can physically come in and interact with a person this is what you should select.  For a stand alone local coffee company, this would be great.
• Company, Organization or Institution: This is best for businesses or companies that exist but may not have a store front (like a strictly online business) or may not be as accessible to the public if they do and/or may have multiple stores. Perhaps you’re a photographer who primarily does outdoor sessions or with varied availability – maybe this is a good fit.
• Brand or Product: This is for any business owner that sells an actual physical product. Think an Mary Kay Independent Beauty Consultant.
• Artist, Band or Public Figure: This type of page is for an actual person. Think your local congressional candidate, a famous entertainer, etc.
• Entertainment: If you have a publication like a magazine, something with frequent live or recorded broadcasts (like a TV show, etc.) this is where you would fit.
• Cause or Community: I know this is probably where you would assume that you would classify yourself as a non-profit or community organization. I would highly recommend that instead you classify yourself as a company, organization or institution.

For fun, we’re going to select Company, Organization or Institution as this can apply to businesses that may be more online based. There are then several different categories that will be listed. Pick the one that most closely resembles what your business can offer. Then enter your company’s name. It does have to meet Facebook guidelines (i.e. it can’t be super long, etc.)

When you click ‘Get Started‘ this means that you agree to Facebook Page Terms.

Branding Your Facebook Page

Begin by adding a Profile Picture by selecting Add a Picture.  Depending on what type of business you own your profile picture could be a professionally done photo of yourself, which is great for public figures and for companies that are more independently owned (i.e. Beauty Consultant, Photographer, Etc.) You could also utilize this space to share your companies logo. Either way, just know that it should be about 170 pixels x 170 pixels, i.e. a square.

Then select Cover Photo to add one to your business page. This could be a graphic with your mission statement, tagline, motto, etc, or even a new product you’re offering. Either way, make sure that it is branded appropriately and sized 820 pixels x 360 pixels. Later we will discuss how to craft an AMAZING cover photo, but for now if you don’t know how to size a graphic you can always drag it when uploading to display most of what you are wanting.

Creating a Killer About Tab

To navigate here select the About tab on the left hand side. Under the general section you can choose to set your page’s username. This is similar to a handle that you use on your other social media accounts for your business. I suggest they are the same so that the branding is cohesive.

You can add a start date, mission, etc. While these are important, I highly recommend sharing your website, email, and potentially phone number  underneath the contact info segment so that people are able to contact you and receive more information about your business.

The next most important thing to do should be adding your short and long descriptions. Begin with the short description by selecting the Edit About link found under More Info. This is one of the easiest ways to help people find you. Think of Facebook being used like the Google Search Engine. People find answers to questions and solutions by typing queries. This will take some time, but you need to focus on finding helpful keywords to list here that describe what your business has to offer while noting what an average person may be searching for. Once you have a few written down, use Facebook to search for them and see what pages come up. Do they align with what your business offers? Strategically place these keywords into your 250 character short description link to describe what your business offers.

Next you’ll select the Edit Story link. This is where you can give a longer description about your businesses beginnings and qualifications as well as what services you offer. Take care to use the keywords you identified earlier in this long description through the Edit Story link. You also have more room to make it personable which is more appealing than your short description to potential customers.

Make it Community Friendly

In general there are probably some settings you want to take care of for your small business Facebook page. I would recommend visiting Settings near the top right of your page.

You can choose whether or not you want people to be able to post on your page. If you feel they should be able too, I would highly recommend that you should select the option to review posts beforehand.

You should also put your profanity filter on, you can select Medium or Strong.

Take Into Account Your End Goal

Whether it’s to build an email list, drive traffic to a website, market a physical product, etc. this button can do that for you. There is more information about how to use this button effectively here. You can find the tab labeled Add Button on your company’s home page.

Next just shoot out some attractive content in the way of graphics, articles, etc.

Once you have done this you can decide whether or not to invite your friends to like your page. They will want to show their support, but may not be your target customer which can lead to problems down the road. Instead, look into these options if you have decided you want to take  different route.

Bam – look at you fantastic small business owner, you outrageous entrepreneur – you! You have not only created a Facebook Page, but you have now optimized it for ideal customers to find you and we are so proud!

Have you set up your Small Business Facebook Page yet?

Thanks for reading!

Lauren