Facebook is a social network where people connect with friends and companies. It can be used for communication and sharing content. There are personal profiles for individuals and business fan pages for companies. Tips include starting with a personal profile, determining if business and personal profiles will be mixed or separated, and using a business fan page that does not show personal information. Facebook offers tools for businesses to engage with customers, advertise, and gain insights into their fan base. Proper use involves regular posting, responding to fans, and avoiding spamming or self-promotion only.

1. FacebookAsheville Social Media Business Courses

2. Presented byAsheville Area Chamber of Commerce at ashevillechamber.orgKelby Carr of Carr Creations LLC at carrcreations.com

3. Basics of Facebook

4. What is Facebook?Facebook is a social network where people connect with friends and companiesFacebook can be used to communicate and to share pictures, links, events, content, videos and moreFacebook is a mainstream social network (reaches 52% of social users online vs. Twitter’s 10%)*Facebook is the place to reach both influencers and consumers en masse*Source: Nielson

5. All it takes is a computer or a phone

6. Types of Facebook ProfilesBusinessPersonalYour personal profile is attached to your full name and a photo of youYou make friends You share updates, pictures, videos and contentThe best business promotion is a combination of personal and business profilesYour business fan page is attached to your business name and a business photo or logoYou get fansYou share updates, pictures, videos and contentYour fans share the same

7. Tips for Getting Started You should first sign up as a person with your real name (not business name) and your headshotDetermine if you want business and personal mixed or separatedYou can use tools such as email import to find people you already know to add as friendsYou can determine how private or public you want your account to beYou should use a business page that will not show your personal informationMaintain access and control of your fan page

8. “You will make mistakes. If you are sincere about helping the community, the authenticity will show and your mistakes will be forgiven.” Zia Yusufexecutive vice president for SAP’s global ecosystem and partner group

9. Why Facebook?Facebook is the number 2 site on the entire web for traffic, with 133 million unique visits in January 2010. It is ranked second, only behind Google.The traffic has doubled in the past year.The story of Facebook is being made into a major motion picture, The Social Network.Source: Compete.com

10. Facebook by the Numbers More than 3 billion photos uploaded each month More than 5 billion pieces of content shared each week Business Pages have created more than 5.3 billion fansAverage user spends more than 55 minutes per dayMore than 400 million active users 50% of active users log on to Facebook in any given dayMore than 35 million users update their status each day More than 60 million status updates posted each day Source: Facebook

11. Facebook DemographicsSource: Facebook and iStrategy

12. Facebook privacy

13. “Don't say anything online that you wouldn't want plastered on a billboard with your face on it." Erin Bury Sprouter community manager

14. Being Safe on FacebookLike any popular site, there are issues with privacy and securityDo not click suspicious linksDo not click emails or strange messages seeking Facebook login informationBe wary of strange applications asking for permission to launch in FacebookUse the built-in settings to decide for yourself how private your profile should be

15. You can control your privacyFacebook lets you decide who can see a wide variety of aspects of your privacy. You can be as open as you’d like, you can make sure only friends you approve see your information, or you can lock down your profile so people only see very basic information like your name and a tiny picture of you without your permission.

17. Facebook fan pages

18. A Great Fan PageSet your fan page’s address at facebook.com/usernameEncourage interaction, engagement and feedback from your fansReward customers for being fans via deals, great content, a sense of relationshipIs open and allows fans to comment, add pictures, add videos, participateResponds quickly to contributions from fans

19. French Broad Chocolate Lounge

20. Starbucks

21. Etsy

22. Little Debbie Engaging FansLittle Debbie posts a picture of the original girl used for their brand.477 likes and 107 comments “makes me want to buy more cream pies” “I can't even remember how many brownies I've eaten while looking at that face”

23. Building a fan base

24. “The secret isn’t growing a huge fan base. We have 100,000 Facebook fans, but those fans have all come to us organically. We believe the more organic the growth, the more loyal the fans, the more likely they will be repeat customers.” Cam Balzervice president of marketing at Threadless

25. Getting FansPromote your fan page everywhere: on location, on web site, in company email signatures, e-newsletter, brochures, with site badge and in advertisingInvite your Facebook friends to be fansBe an active user on FacebookInvite people to join on Facebook and other social networksOffer incentives to become a fan via contests, coupons and exclusive deals

26. Incentives to Fans Kraft offers new fans a chance to get their new Cheesy Explosion Macaroni and Cheese free if they become a fan. They encourage both viral spreading of the offer, and new fans left several comments raving about their products.

27. How Facebook is Viral

28. Fan Page Statistics Fan page insights provide data on interactions and demographics of your page.

29. “The polling of Internet users shows that friends’ recommendations are the most reliable driver behind purchasing decisions. Right now that market is largely untapped. Facebook and other social networks can allow that to happen.” Yuri MilnerRussian social-media investor

30. Facebook tips

31. Bad PracticesDo not bombard fans with several messages or links at onceDo not spam other people’s profiles or fan pages with promotion of your businessAllow conversation to appear on your fan page wall unless it is inappropriateDon’t be non-responsiveDo more than just self-promote, but also join into the conversationDon’t leave control with one employee

32. Facebook ApplicationsNetworked BlogsGLPrint Business CardsProfessional ProfileIEndorseTestimonialsMy OfficeSlideshareStatic FBMLFind more at http://mashable.com/2009/01/22/business-facebook-apps/

33. Facebook advertisingYou can purchase ads on Facebook for as little as $5 per dayYou can drive clicks to a web site or your fan pageYou pay by the clickYou can target ads by demographics or interest in certain keywordsAds are at facebooks.com/ads

34. Time ManagementIt is acceptable to automate some, such as pulling in Twitter updates or a blog feedYou can “hide” items in your main page Facebook stream, such as games and silly appsSchedule a few minutes every weekday to visit Facebook and check fan pageTake a few minutes once a week to visit other business pages for ideas

35. Asheville Social Media AVLSocialMedia.com