Facebook

We’ve already covered the 7 reasons why you should have a Facebook page instead of a Facebook profile. But what if you’ve already created a Facebook profile? I’m going to show you exactly how to convert your profile to a page so you can start taking advantage of all the Page benefits.

This process will only transfer your photos and friends, all your other data will be lost. This includes wall posts, profile information, and photo albums. Once you transfer, there will be no way to recover this information.

Step 1: Backup Your Facebook Profile

Since you’ll lose most of your data, you’ll want to back up your profile before we begin the transfer. This is a really simple process:

• Click on Account in the top right of Facebook.
• Select “Account Settings”
• Click “Download a copy” of your Facebook data.

Facebook will then put together an archive for you and email you when it’s ready. This can take up to an hour.

Step 2: Send a Message to Your Friends

Since the transfer will convert all your friends into fans and change how they interact with you, you’ll want to let your friends know about the upcoming changes. Simply let them know that Facebook policies require that businesses have Pages and that you’ll be moving to a Facebook page over the next couple of days. Here’s a template for you:

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to let you know that we’re converting our Facebook Profile to a Facebook Page. We’ve decided to do this since Facebook policies require businesses to have Pages instead of Profiles. You don’t have to do anything to stay connected with us, we just wanted to give let you know that you’ll be seeing changes on how our account is set up.

Thanks so much for joining us, we’re really excited to keep helping you with [Your product or service offering]! Definitely let us know if you have any questions.

Talk to you soon,

[Your name]

 Step 3: Transfer Your Profile

Start at the Facebook migration page. From here, select the type of page that fits your product or service, the category that best describes it, and confirm the Page name. Facebook will then ask you to confirm the transfer by asking for your password and having you enter a CAPTCHA.

When you’ve confirmed the transfer, Facebook will allow you to update your Profile photo, invite contacts to be friends, and update your About and Website information.

Step 4: Update Your Information

Since all your profile information was lost in the transfer, you’ll want to update this. From your Facebook Page, simply click on “Edit Info ” at the top. You’ll definitely want to fill out these sections:

• Founded
• Description
• Products

Step 5: Start Publishing Content

With a blank and empty wall, you’ll want to start publishing Facebook Posts so that your Page looks active and healthy. If there isn’t much activity on your wall, your customers will be reluctant to start discussions, ask you questions, and purchase from you. Have an active Facebook Page so people will know they’ll get a response from you when they post something to your wall.

If you need ideas for what types of posts do really well, check out my post on 5 Facebook Post Templates that are Guaranteed to Drive Fan Engagement.

And that’s it. You now have a fully functional Facebook Page.

Over the last several years, Facebook has drastically changed what types of accounts they offer. This has produced some confusion on whether a Facebook page or profile is the best option for a business. Here are 7 reasons why you should create a Facebook page:

1. Facebook won’t delete your account.

Facebook actively deletes Facebook profiles that are being used for business. I’ve heard of numerous stories of profiles being deleted without any warning. Avoid this from the start and build a Facebook page instead of a profile.

2. You can have an unlimited number of fans.

Profiles are all limited to only having 5,000 friends. This is a relatively easy limit to hit as a business. Once you hit it, you simply will not be able to connect with more people on Facebook.

Facebook pages allow an unlimited number of fans and will easily scale with you.

3. You can track everything.

All Facebook pages include Facebook Insights which lets you analyze your progress on Facebook. You’ll be able to analyze monthly active users, page interactions, and the effectiveness of individual posts. This means you’ll know when your Facebook campaigns are working and when they’re not.

4. You can integrate your page with your Facebook ads.

There are several types of Facebook ads. One of them allows people to like you right from the ad. This is perfect for building a fan page and increasing the reach of your Facebook posts. You can’t do this with a Facebook profile.

5. You can customize your page.

You’ll be able to build customized pages within Facebook as you grow. Many businesses use these to run contests or build ecommerce functionality right into Facebook. For examples, Delta lets fans purchase tickets right from Facebook. Companies like Wildfire have built easy plugins for you to build out your own Facebook page.

6. It’s much easier to manage a page.

If you have your own profile, you’ll have to constantly log out and log back in whenever you want to switch between your business and your personal profile. With pages, you can easily access everything while logged in on your own profile. Your posts will automatically be posted from your Facebook page, not your personal profile. This will save you a lot of time not having to switch back and forth.

7. Multiple people can easily manage a page.

As you build your business and you either outsource or delegate the management of your Facebook page, simply add another person as an admin of the page. They’ll then have full access and can take over where you left off. With profiles, you’ll have to give them your login information which you should try to avoid whenever possible.

 

For those of you already using Facebook pages, what other advantages have you found?

The term “engagement” has become another overused buzzword just like “leverage” and “transparency.” When it comes to Facebook Pages though, engagement is the only thing that matters.

You want your wall posts to pop up in people’s feeds. This doesn’t happen automatically though. Facebook as a super secret algorithm that includes some posts while excluding others. What gets included? Posts from pages and profiles that someone interacts with on a regular basis. Get people to come to your page frequently ad your posts will appear in their news feeds. Get those same people to interact with your posts and you’ll start popping up in the news feeds of their friends.

When you’ve increased your reach within the world of Facebook, then you can start pitching your business to a receptive and interested audience.

1. Provocative statement that your target market will like. (we recommend you like this)

Make a statement and place (we recommend you like this) below it so your post looks like this:

This is just a simple call to action. Make things easy by telling people exactly what you want them to do.

2. Click like if…

Same type of post with the call to action before the statement. This will let you mix things up a bit more.

3. Option A or Option B?

Give people two options and don’t contextualize it. People will want to debate the context and offer their opinions at the same time. The question is also really easy to answer, lowering the barrier to participating. Post the winner the next day.

4. Use a _______.

Seriously, use a _______. It’ll encourage people to fill in the blank with a comment. Pick a topic people get fired up about and you’ll probably get a debate going too. Take the most creative, funniest, or popular answer and post it the next day.

5. Facebook Poll

Facebook has made it super easy to post polls and questions. Not only is engagement super high but they tend to bring in votes long after you’ve posted them. It’s also a perfect opportunity to get to know our target market more and do some customer research. Which magazine do they like more? Night owls or early birds? Which sports? The list is endless.

Won’t people get tired of these templates?

If you use these templates exclusively for years on end then yes, your content is going to a get a little boring. You’ll want to mix things up a bit but these templates should be the core of your Facebook content. Get creative and come up with post cycles that cover 3 or 4 days. Also work in photos any chance you get. Facebook rose to dominance with photos, make good use of it.

Should I focus on likes or comments?

If you have to choose, focus on comments. Compared to likes, comments are included in news feeds far more frequently but they’re also harder to get. Balancing between the two is the best idea.

 

Has one of these post templates worked beautifully for you? Throw me a link in the comments and I’ll personally like your Facebook page.