8 tips to optimize your Facebook business page

Congratulations on deciding to enhance your online presence! In today's world, over 55% of homeowners run an online search before booking a pro, which makes an online presence critical. Business profile pages such as Facebook can give you a leg up on the local competition and help poise your company for success.

If you haven't already created your page, you can use our helpful guide. Once you've made your page, here are 8 tips to get the most of your Facebook page:

1. Curate your brand

A business Facebook page consists of four primary ways to convey your brand: profile picture, cover photo, posts, and photos. We generally recommend that your profile photo is your logo or icon so that it's easy for homeowners to see and recognize. Facebook cover photos can be helpful to show a picture of your best work or to convey information about your company in a flier-esque way.

Here's the cover photo we use for ProPhone:

The content of posts and photos can vary; however, we recommend sharing similar styles. Some potential post ideas include promotions, market statistics, memes, before and after photos, blog posts, and more. To keep styling consistent, we recommend using the same core colors and font in every post.

If you haven't already decided on a name, logo, and general brand look and feel, we highly recommend doing so as you enhance your Facebook page. Consistency with will make your content more recognizable for homeowners. We offer a custom plan which can help you get started!

2. Add basic company information

Now that you've updated the first visual impression of your site, it's time to update the About section on the left hand menu of your page. We recommend filling out as many categories as you can such as page name (business name), address, about blurb, phone number, hours, and more.

While it might seem tedious, spend some time crafting your about blurb. This is one of the first impressions you'll make to a potential customer, so you want it to be strong. Here's an example:

Caro’s Landscaping and Lawn has been Toledo’s most trusted service for the past 15 years. Our team is professional, trained, and ready to take care of all your lawn care needs. Our customers are always our #1 priority, so we offer a satisfaction guarantee.

3. Add website and profile links

In the about section, you also have the option to add your website and links to other business profile pages. We highly recommend adding everything that you can! This will enable homeowners to gather as much information about your company as they may need. Some of the other social media platforms include Instagram and LinkedIn. It's important to remember to keep the information (e.g., hours, contact information) across these different profiles consistent to avoid any confusion. If you do not currently have a website for your company, consider checking out ProSite, which instantaneously builds a beautiful-looking website based on a 15-min form.

4. Fill out your services

The services tab is critical to sharing information to homeowners about what you offer and what they can expect. If you leave this section blank or do not fill it out enough, you may end up fielding calls from homeowners looking for services you don't offer and losing leads from homeowners who don't realize you can help them out.

Each service consists of a name, price, description, duration, and optional image. We highly recommend taking the time to type out a helpful description for every service, even if it might feel a bit tedious. Here is an example of the level of detail we'd recommend:

5. Keep your photos up-to-date

Homeowners want to see all the awesome work that you've done so that they feel great about using your service. One way to do that is to keep your photos up-to-date so that they can see multiple projects over time. If a lot of your photos tend to be from the same house or if they tend to be lower quality, homeowners could opt for another company.

Some tips to take and upload high-quality photos include focusing on alignment when you take the picture so it doesn't look lopsided, make sure the camera is stable and the lights are on so your picture is bright and crisp, and taking multiple angles of a project. We know you do an amazing job at your craft, so make sure your potential clients can see it first hand as well!

6. Ask for reviews

Facebook provides a tab for your customers to leave a review! This can be a helpful way for future customers to hear firsthand how great of a service pro you are. To get started, we recommend messaging some of your best past or current clients with a link to your new Facebook page asking if they'd be willing to leave a review. Even just a few reviews can go a long way in giving your new Facebook small business page credibility.

7. Add to your personal page

At this point, your Facebook business page is fairly robust! You've curated your branding, you've added helpful information about the business and services, and you've boosted your credibility with reviews. Now, it's time to navigate to your personal Facebook account where you can add your title and business. If you click on "About" and then "Work and Education," you'll have the option to add a workplace. Add your title and search for your new business page. Now if anyone finds your personal page (e.g., in an industry group you belong to), they'll know you're also the owner of your company and can easily find your business page for more information.

8. Share your page

You're almost done! Your business profile is set up. You've linked your personal profile to it. Now, it's time to share your page. There are many ways to share your page to reach your target audience and increase engagement.

Here are some that we highly recommend to maximize your page visibility and page visitors:

• Post from your personal Facebook profile with a link to your new business profile.
• Share the link in industry groups such as your local landscaping Facebook group.
• Ask your friends, family, and clients to share your page.
• Use the "Automated Ads" link on your business page to start Facebook marketing.
• Set up Google Local Services to advertise your new business and page (you can use this guide to get started).