Four Facebook features for your business

Posted on Monday July 10, 2017

Facebook has numerous built-in features to help small- and medium-sized businesses thrive. But chances are that most business owners are taking advantage of only just a few. With Facebook's audience reaching 1.8 billion users monthly, it's vital for your business to leverage the right tools to enhance growth. Here are four features you should start using right away:

Audience Insights tool This free tool is designed to help businesses learn more about their target audience. Audience Insights takes the guesswork out of identifying your customers by providing data such as geography, purchasing patterns, and even the Facebook pages they like. You can also use your existing customer database, Facebook page, or email list to learn more about your clients. Audience Insights help save a lot of time and money by determining whom you should advertise to.

Facebook Product Shops This allows you to sell your products directly from your Facebook page. After following these instructions, you can set up your product shop in just a few clicks. You can choose whether you want buyers to purchase directly on Facebook or whether you want buyers to complete checkout on your website. Consider running ads using the data gathered from the Audience Insights tool to target ideal customers and increase sales.

New Facebook Ads Facebook's advertising platform offers endless combinations to create the perfect ad. It features numerous placement options that go beyond the traditional newsfeed. There are two new ad destinations that could help you reach new audiences:

• Facebook Messenger ads - deliver a highly personalized experience by providing an opportunity for you to chat with prospective customers. You can answer questions or schedule appointments from the Messenger app.
• In-stream video ads - despite being relatively new, this prime advertising space allows businesses to deliver 5-15 second mid-roll video ads within live and non-live videos on Facebook.

Facebook Live marketing Due to its rising popularity, businesses are looking for ways to incorporate Facebook Live into their social media marketing strategies. Here are a couple of tips to optimize Facebook Live usage:

• Livestream pre-scheduling - this tool creates and pre-schedules Facebook Live streams, thereby boosting anticipation for your videos and prompting viewers to mark their calendars if they want to tune in.
• Merge it with your Product Shop - this feature can be used on your Facebook page only if you've set up your Product Shop. When you mention your products in a livestream, you'll be able to tag your products in the video, allowing viewers to access your Product Shop directly from the video.

In order to surpass your competitors, you'll need to not only establish a strong online presence but also know how to leverage Facebook to your business's advantage. If you're interested in adopting a social media marketing strategy, feel free to give us a call or send us an email!