How To Optimize Your Facebook Profile for Business (from Nikko’s Blog)
I did not believe it. The first time I heard the stat it blew my mind. It was over double what I guessed.
The stat came up in our marketing meeting yesterday. We do a ton of research for our marketing at JVM. Constant reports and data to make sure we are headed in the right direction. So, in our latest dig for stats and numbers here is what we found.
There are over 1,000,000,000 people on Facebook! That number is one billion. Wait, there is more.
Now is the first time in history more people are getting their news online than from a major media outlet. Guess where “online” is… Facebook! Take this next bit of info into consideration.
Facebook gets more eyeballs and attention than almost any other platform in the world. All of those people in one place means one thing for business.
Facebook is a marketing gold mine… if the right tips are followed.
Here are those great tips to optimize your Facebook for your personal business.
All tips come from Guy Kawasaki. Guy is considered a Power Player in Social Media and a big time influencer. Guy has over 1.5 million followers on Twitter, over 430,000 followers on Facebook, over 2.6 million followers on LinkedIn, and lastly over 7 million followers on Google+.
What follows will be Guy’s advice from his book. Strategies and tips he uses to take full advantage of social media.
His techniques all have one goal: get more followers and expand his reach of influence. This is a great goal for marketing too. Let’s dive in to some key takeaways for using Facebook.
Basic Rules
1. Screen name
This one is easy. For facebook use our real name, or the name you would use if you met a typical Facebook friend for the first time.
For example, I introduce myself as Nicholas when I meet someone for the first time. So, I used Nicholas as my Facebook name. But I also go by two other names.
When people are comfortable with me they often refer to me as Nick or Nikko. I am totally OK with either.
In any case, since I introduce myself as Nicholas that is the name I use.
2. Scanability
Think “Glance-worthy”. Someone should get a complete idea of who you are in a single glance of your Facebook profile.
Most people scan through the internet anyways instead of reading every detail. So, it’s best to make a profile that fits the way people use the internet. The best profiles keep the following principle in mind.
– Make a person want to follow you and read your posts in single glance
Lastly, Guy says your profile should say these three things:
1. I’m likeable
2. I’m trustworthy
3. I’m competent
Let’s take a look at a few ways to do that next!
3. Avatar/Profile Picture
A profile picture should be high quality and a recent photo that clearly shows your face.
We all know someone that doesn’t exactly look like their outdated photos.
But seriously, the face is one of the most distinctive features someone can have. Take advantage of that. Someone should immediately be able to recognize you from your profile photo.
There is a time and place to get creative and have fun with a photo, however your profile picture isn’t it. We will cover when shortly.
Pro Tip: Make the photo interesting and more eye catching by making it asymmetrical. It will stand out a little more, even just a little bit helps. See the photos below:
Extra Pro Tip: Use one photo across all of you social media platforms. Multiple photos will confuse people. The same photo for all profiles will keep you (your brand) easily recognizable.
4. Mantra
Make a profile personal by adding a Mantra.
These are words to live by. A personal belief held deep.
It should be extremely short and tell about what you do, or who you are, or why you do what you do. Easy right?
Guy Kawasaki’s Mantra is: “I empower people”
5. Tell Your Story
The cover photo is a great time to get creative and have fun with a picture. It should portray the big picture of who you are and your personal story.
A cover photo is a really good place to show hobbies, or passions. Anything that is especially significant. For example, family or pets are perfect options.
6. Completeness
A profile should have every section filled in. Bio, About, Contact Information, Websites, etc.
Complete profiles send the message that it took time and thought to put it all together (even if it only took 10 minutes).
Pro Tip: Ask a friend or colleague to double-check your spelling and grammar. Poor spelling, punctuation, and grammar will look unprofessional.
How To Get More Followers
Share good stuff
It’s that easy. To earn more followers share good stuff. But what does “good stuff” mean?
Good stuff adds value to your followers. Get to know your friends and followers. Share things you know they will care about and will want to read.
Too many people fall into a trap of only posting what they want to read or find interesting.
Pro Tip: If a post does not pass the re-share test, consider not sharing it.
The re-share test is simple. If a friend or follower would not share your post then it does not pass the re-share test.
It is a tough test and makes sure you are only sharing awesome stuff. Your friends and follower will love you for this. Plus, you won’t clog up their feed with things they probably don’t care about.
This blog just covered Guy Kawasaki’s basics for social media. There is much more coming.
The next blog will go in-depth on how to share good stuff. Guy has awesome tips for types of content to post and how to make the perfect posts. Stay tuned!
Jay Voorhees
Founder/Broker | JVM Lending
(855) 855-4491 | DRE# 1197176, NMLS# 310167
