How Facebook Fan Pages Can Build Your Organization or Small Business

Facebook is a great way to keep in touch with family, friends and colleagues. Facebook has survived where many other social-media sites before it have failed. Facebook's social network is appealing because of its security measures that let you share info with your friends only instead of being exposed to the whole world.

Individuals from teenagers to grandparents maintain Facebook accounts because these accounts are universal and can be used for all kinds of communications and entertainment. Additionally, using Facebook's relaxed, casual environment is easier and more inviting than sending someone an email. You can use Facebook to find old friends and check out new friends, send private messages or make a comment on someone's Wall.

A Facebook fan page, which is free to create in Facebook, lets you establish a group, publicize a cause or market your business through the largest referral network available. You can link to your website and share photos, video feed, or RSS feed from your blog directly to your Facebook page.

"Our motto is not to rebuild your website within Facebook," says Jim Belosic, a co-founder of ShortStack, a company that provides do-it-yourself Facebook templates and web hosting for fan pages. Instead, the Facebook application serves as a marketing tool to get the word out about your cause, product or service. Although it is possible to link to PayPal or another merchant service through Facebook, web developers recommend conducting critical business functions on an independent website.

Facebook Fan Page Tips
As we conducted a review of services like ShortStack, we learned a few tips about building a Facebook fan page that we share here that will really enhance your setup.

It's easy to start a Facebook fan page. Simply click on the Pages tab on the left side of your Facebook account. Then click the Create a Page button at the top of your screen. Choose from six different general types of pages, including:

• Local business or place
• Company, organization or institution
• Brand or product
• Artist, band or public figure
• Entertainment
• Cause or community

Select a category in the dropdown field. Then, in the next box, enter the name of your page. Click on the "I agree to Facebook Pages Terms" button then click Get Started. It's that easy.

Along the left side of your fan page, you will see a few tabs including Wall, Info and Photos. A do-it-yourself Facebook fan page creation service can help you build new tabs such as a Welcome tab, map to your store or office, instructional video, Twitter feed or contact form. Consider building a tab to promote a sale of products or services or to advertise an event such as a concert or summer camp.

To assign a tab to appear when people find your Facebook fan page in a search, click on Edit Page in the top right corner of your fan page. Then click the Default Landing Tab's dropdown field and select which tab you would like to appear when people your page in a search. Note that the field will only appear if the page has at least one Like (follower). Then to return to your page, click on View Page.

You can delete a tab within your Facebook fan page by clicking on Edit, which is listed at the bottom of the initial group of tabs on the left side of the page. An X will appear next to each tab. Simply click on the X to delete the tab, but once you do so, however, it's gone. You won't get a prompt saying, "Are you sure you want to do this?"

You can change the name of a tab, which Facebook calls an app, by clicking on Edit Info at the top of the page and then selecting Apps on the left side. Under the tab you have created, select Edit Settings, and from there you can change the name of the tab. Click Save and then Okay.

You can use your list of page followers to send messages through Facebook, or you can post a message on the page's Wall, which will send your followers an email notification. Use those to link to promotional or informational tabs on your page, and to link to your external website.

These tips should help you become even more familiar with using Facebook applications.

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