The website you create for your business can have a huge influence on the perception of your brand for current and prospective clients. However, websites don’t carry the potential for networking that their cousins Facebook and Twitter do. If your business has a Facebook page and has already begun amassing fans, that’s a great start. But with recent updates to the functionality of fan pages, are you using this tool to its maximum potential? With the right approach and a few targeted changes, you can maximize your return on investment in just a few minutes a day.

Using Facebook for Fan Pages

How influential is Facebook nowadays? Just a year ago, the social network had 400 million users. That number is now up to 600 million- and is growing daily. 51% of Americans use Facebook regularly; if your target market consists of younger or affluent leads, that figure jumps even higher. Chances are, if you want to connect with someone, Facebook is one of the best and most direct ways available. On Facebook, the dividing line between business and personal accounts is easy to manage. Fan pages can have several admins, enabling you and your team to interact on Facebook via your official business account. You can also add agents, partners, and assistents to your fan page as administrators, allowing everyone to interact under your business’ account.

Setting your featured profile pictures

Recent changes to the layout of Facebook pages enable you to define your brand with several pictures instead of one. Agents can upload pictures of featured properties, industry related or other photos for a more dynamic brand profile. Retailer Home Goods facebook page is a good example of a selection of brand-related photos:

Carefully select your first five pictures with the idea of who your fans are and what you feel will give them the perception of your business you are seekin; these photos will be the crowing images of your fan page. Make sure to disable the tagging function in your fan page’s settings to prevent users from pushing your selected images off the top five.

Defining your brand “featured likes”

The functions of Facebook allow you to dynamically illustrate what your brand represents. One way to do this is through setting featured “likes” on your page. Featured likes are managed by going to Edit Page > Featured > Featured Likes, and then setting the top five in your list. Here’s an example of relevant likes from Starbucks on Facebook:

The “like” button is the best friend of businesses on Facebook. Yes, getting clientele to like your page is crucial. But here’s where the great reciprocity of Facebook comes in. “Like” relevant or favored local businesses. “Like” people who influence your business or espouse a similar philosophy. “Like” other brands that relate to your target market- for instance, if your customers tend to be brand conscious, Viking ranges or Sub Zero refrigerators help shape the perception of your business.

Getting fans to interact

Along with new functions, Facebook has changed feeds to display only those users with whom you interact regularly, a change that affects both you and your page’s fans. Consistency is a big part of successfully interacting on Facebook, consider these benchmarks to keep a steady stream of content in your fans feeds:

• Post a question or poll, or ask fans for their opinion on something;
• Share relevant news articles to foster engagement;
• Maintain a posting schedule. At least once a day is optimal, but at least three times a week is a very basic commitment.
• Create “events” to draw fans toward interacting on your page.

Also, each thoughtful or insightful comment you make on another page or brand reinforces your image to other Facebook users and can create a backlog of friendly interactions with which clients can relate.

Using tabs to maximize your page’s potential

Your Facebook page’s tabs are now at the top of the page, and you can add custom tabs that are not standard to all Facebook pages. This is a plus in several ways, starting with users’ first interactions on your page. You may think landing on your Wall is ideal to encourage users to engage on your Facebook page, however it may be advantageous to create a custom tab to first greet users on your page. Go to Edit Page > Manage Permissions > Default Landing Tab to select the tab you wish fans and new users to see. Whole Foods, for instance, directs users to a “Recipes” tab in a visually pleasing way:

Have you successfully used Facebook to boost your brand’s profile and raise your bottom line? Have you discovered any strategies you’ve found indispensible?