Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Facebook alive

     Free daily tips, info, advice, ideas, with business examples
     from my lifetime of experiences in business--been there, done that.

     Facebook is a fantastic promotional tool for small business. It's almost effortless from the standpoint of your time. And it's free.

     Example: Leonetta is a therapist specializing in Reiki. Her client base for people is growing with referrals. She decides to expand her operation by offering Reiki for pets. Pictures of pets always attract attention. She snaps pictures of dogs, puppies and other animals and posts them on her Facebook page. These pictures are exchanged among groups of friends--and calls come in. To speed up appointments, Leonetta posts new pictures daily. To slow it down, she posts only once each week. 

     Example: Robert's garden center uses Facebook. He posts close-up pictures of blooming plants to attract attention. If he can capture a butterfly, so much the better. These pictures of chrysanthemums and asters bring people to the garden center. For autumn interest, he posts pictures of corn stalks and pumpkins. In spring, it's daffodils and tulips. He avoids people's faces in the pictures he takes, but frequently shows a working hand. 

     Example: Sara runs a gift shop. She photographs every new item--giving her a record of her inventory. Many items in her shop are from artists and artisans who produce one-of-a-kind pieces--jewelry, ceramics, photographs, paintings, and the like. She selects from the photographs those that she knows will attract attention and posts them on Facebook. It stirs interest and brings people to her shop.

     Example: Franklin is an attorney. He regularly volunteers to speak at public events--club meetings, senior centers, organizational gatherings, etc. He gets an agreement to take and use pictures of the meeting on Facebook. The pictures go on Facebook, looking like a news items in the local paper. People see themselves on Facebook, pass the pictures around, and calls come in to the attorney's office for appointments.

     Facebook can work in any business. Snap pictures and post them. If you snap pictures of people's faces, get an okay to use them. 

     Don't know how to use Facebook? Go on the website and let them lead you through the simple process. If you're still confused, ask any teenager for help.