Facebook is where your customers are and where your business should be. You have no excuse. Afterall, it’s free. Chances are your business is already on Facebook. Find it by searching Facebook for the name of your business.

If it exists, click it to go to the page. If the page is unmanaged, you’ll see Unofficial Page below its cover photo. You can request to claim the page and become its administrator, and you can merge the Page into a Page you already manage for your business. To claim or merge an unmanaged Page click “Is this your business?” below the Page’s cover photo. Follow the on-screen instructions. You’ll be asked to prove that you are the owner, either by phone call or postcard.

If no page exists, you can create a page simply by going to this Url: facebook.com/pages/create. Select the Business or Brand link and fill in the form that follows.

Now that you have a page, here are three ways you can use your Facebook page to increase your business.

1. Start by posting some interesting content, like the day’s specials, then ask for a response. One of the benefits of Facebook is that posts get shown more if they have a higher level of interaction. Even if it’s as little as getting likes you’ve increased engagement which, in turn, increases your Facebook rankings.
2. Run a contest. Get an amazing photo of one of your products and offer a giveaway. For example, “Like this post today to win a free lunch” and then select a winner from those who’ve liked it. Follow up with a photo of the winner who shows up with all their friends or co-workers for the freebie.
3.  Post interesting articles you read online and, as an expert in your field, explain why it’s a good article or why it’s not. This establishes you as a leader and yet it doesn’t blatantly sell something.

An extra tip I have for you is that if one of your posts is getting a lot of interaction, it would be in your best interests to boost the post. For a relatively cheap amount of money, you can keep your post in front of the customers who are most likely to benefit from your product. To boost a post navigate to the specific post on your page’s timeline. You’ll see a “Boost this Post” underneath the post. Then you can choose who you want to show the post and how much you want to spend. When you’re just starting out, keep the total amount a low rate and see if you get a good response. Luckily, Facebook often gives you advice on who to target and shows you the analytics of the boosted post in your page’s insights.

If you’d like some help setting up your new Business Facebook Page to reflect your Business’s specific brand, please see our Social Media Starter Plan.