Since being on Facebook can make it easier for people to discover and interact with a business online, knowing not only how to set up your business on Facebook but also how to optimize your business page can help you reach a wider range of people more efficiently.
As experts in digital marketing, the team from FirstPage Marketing understands the importance of making it extremely easy for potential customers to find your business online. That is why they offer a range of digital marketing services, including social media marketing, that are designed to help businesses reach their target audiences.
1. Sign Up
The first step in setting up a business on Facebook is going to facebook.com/business and creating a page using the dropdown menu on the top right-hand side. When setting up a business page, you will be required to select the type of business the page is for. If the business falls under more than one of the category options Facebook provides, make sure to select the option that customers will most likely associate your business with.
In addition to selecting a business type, you will also need to provide further details, such as business name, address, phone number, and page category.
2. Add Photos
When adding photos to your Facebook business page, make sure to choose photos that align with the brand and can be easily identified by users. Since providing a good visual first impression is extremely important, selecting a high-quality image of a product or using the company logo can help customers make an immediate connection with your business.
The two most important photos that a business can publish right away are the profile photo and cover photo. For the profile photo, they recommend using a company logo. The cover photo can take on many different styles and does not actually have to be a photo at all. A high-quality video can be used in place of the cover photo. They suggest experimenting with the cover photo or video to feature current promotions, products, or important company updates.
Since Facebook is still a social network that is mostly used by regular people, it is important to try to avoid using overly commercial or product-driven imagery. Instead, businesses should try to show off the human side of their brands and should only use the highest possible resolution images that are shot with the correct Facebook post dimensions.
The recommended image sizes for Facebook are:
- Facebook profile picture size: 180px x 180px
- Facebook cover photo size: 851px x 315 px
- Facebook link image size: 1200px x 628px
- Facebook image post size: 1220px x 900px
- Facebook highlighted image size: 1200px x 717px
- Facebook event image size: 1920px x 1080px
- Facebook video size: 1280px x 720px
- Facebook ad size: 1280px x 628px
- Facebook video ad size: 1280px x 720px
- Facebook Story ad size: 1080px x 1920px
3. Create a Username
Since your username is how people will find you on Facebook, it is important to select a username that is easy to type and to remember. Using the business name or an obvious variation of it is highly recommended.
4. Complete the About Section
Even though most people tend to leave filling out the “About” section for a later date, filling out all of the fields right away can make a big difference. This is because customers will be able to find all of the information about the business in one location, lowering the chance of them moving onto a different site and one of your competitors.
The “About” section also provides a great place to setup expectations for how you will interact with customers through Facebook and to provide them with information about the best ways to contact your business.
Writing a short description and adding it to the About section of your Facebook page can be a great way to introduce your business to potential customers. Consider writing content that is clear, concise, and only shares what your customers need to know about the business.
5. Create Your First Post
Before inviting people to like the Facebook page, make sure to share some valuable content that will keep users engaged. Consider creating posts about the business or sharing relevant industry related content like blog articles, videos, infographics and images. You can also create more specific posts to highlight an upcoming company event or sale.
7. Start Engaging
Once the page is setup and you are happy with it, start inviting past customers, family members, and friends to like the page. Consider using other marketing channels like the company website or promotional materials to advertise the new page to potential customers.
8. Set Up Facebook Business Manager
Facebook Business Manager is a tool that is specifically designed to help manage your page, publish content, advertise, and view analytics, while also keeping the page separate from your personal account. Setting up Facebook Business Manager will also make it easy to provide other users with access to the company page, so that more than one person can post content for the business.
To set up Facebook Business Manager and connect it to your Facebook page:
- Go to facebook.com/create and select “Create Account”.
- Enter your name and confirm your identity with your personal Facebook login credentials.
- Follow the prompts to create your business account.
- In Business Manager, go to “Pages” and click “Add” at the top to bring up a dropdown menu.
- Enter the name of the page in the empty space and then select “Add Page”.
- Since you are already an Admin of the page, this should grant you immediate access.
9. Set Up Facebook Ads Manager
Facebook Ads Manager is a tool that allows you to run social media ads on Facebook and Instagram and can be managed using Facebook Business Manager. Using Facebook Ads Manager will allow you to advertise to more specific demographics online.
To set up Facebook Ads manager:
- Go to Facebook Business Manager and open up “Business Manager Settings”.
- On the left side, under “Accounts”, click on “Ad Account”.
- Click the blue “+Add button” at the top and then select “Create New Ad Account”.
- Enter an account name.
- Select the time and select Canadian as the preferred currency.
- Enter your payment details.
To add other users to your ad account:
- Go to “Ad Account Settings” in Facebook Ads Manager.
- Under “Ad Account Roles”, select “Add People”.
- Enter the name and email address of the person you want to give access to.
- Using the dropdown menu, choose their role and then click “Confirm”.
10. Set Up Facebook Pixel
Facebook Pixel is a tool that can be used to measure the effectiveness of your Facebook advertising by understanding the actions people take when using your website. Setting up Facebook Pixel for your business page can help ensure that your ads are reaching the right people, which can lead to more sales and a better understanding of the overall impact of your ads.
To set up Facebook Pixel:
- Open Facebook Ads Manager and select “Pixels” from the “Assets” column in the top menu.
- Click “Create a Pixel” and add a name.
- Install the Facebook Pixel base code by either using a Tag Manager plugin or by copying and pasting the Pixel code manually. To install the Pixel code manually, click the code box to copy the code and then past it in the header tags on your website under the SEO settings.
- Install the Facebook Pixel event code by clicking “Next” to get another snippet of code to install on the specific web pages you want to track actions on.
- Decide which event code you want to track from the dropdown menu, copy the code from the box, and place it on the relevant pages of the website.
- Test the Pixel status to see if it is active by going to Facebook Ads Manager and selecting “Pixels”. Note: It may take 20 minutes before the status is updated.
How to Optimize a Business Page on Facebook
While setting up a business on Facebook can be a great way to reach your target audience, it is still important to optimize the page to maximize user engagement and to help you meet any Facebook marketing goals. Some of the steps that can be taken to optimize a business page on Facebook include:
Getting Verified
Having the coveted verification badge attached to your business’ Facebook page will provide potential customers with the knowledge that the page is legitimate, giving them the confidence to directly deal with your brand. Smaller or local businesses can apply to Facebook to receive a grey verification badge, which can be added to each of the business’ specific locations.
Adding a Call to Action (CTA)
Facebook offers a built in CTA button that makes it easy of customers to engage with your business. While Facebook automatically sets this button up as a “Send Message” button, this button can be customized to allow visitors to learn more about the business, shop online, download a PDF, or book an appointment.
Using Pinned Posts
Since pinned posts sit at the top of a Facebook page, just under the cover image, they provide a great way to display promotional information or to grab a visitor’s attention, drawing them in and getting them to stick around. To create a pinned post, start by writing a regular post and then selecting the “Pin to Top of Page” option from the dropdown menu on the top right of the post.
Linking to the Facebook Page from Other Web Pages
Adding backlinks will not only help boost the overall credibility of the Facebook page but also search engine rankings. Creating backlinks to the business’ Facebook page is as simple as linking the page to other website pages, such as blog posts.
How to Connect Your Facebook & Instagram Accounts
If you have both a Facebook and Instagram account for your business, it may be a good idea to connect the accounts to make it easier to manage advertisements. To link an Instagram account to your business’ Facebook page:
- Go to your Instagram profile and select “Settings” from the menu.
- Select “Linked Accounts” under “Account” and then select “Facebook”.
- Enter your Facebook login information.
- By default, Instagram will link to your personal Facebook profile. This can be changed to link to a business page instead by choosing the page from the “Share to” option.
Setting up a Facebook business page can be a great way to reach a wider audience of potential customers online. To learn more about how to set up your business on Facebook, get in touch with the digital marketing experts today.