Using Facebook to Promote your eBay Listings: Worth the effort?

Facebook needs no introduction: We all know what it is and the might it holds on the internet, but is there any return to be made when you promote your eBay business there (or any other marketplace-based business)?

For most sellers, the answer is yes: Facebook provides us with a platform to not only advertise our products and our business, but also to engage with new and existing customers which in turn can dramatically increase your number of sales.

As with all marketing, Facebook is no magic bullet and in order to get maximum gains from the time you spend on Facebook, you need to commit time and energy to a long-term campaign. If you can do that, keep reading for a quick guide to getting the most out of your Facebook campaign.

If your business isn’t already on Facebook, find out how to create a Facebook Page here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php

(Note: A Facebook Page is different from a Facebook Profile which is what you have for personal use. You need a personal Facebook Profile in order to create a Facebook Page. If you need to create a Facebook Profile, you can do so on the Facebook homepage.)

Easy ways to get more from your Facebook Page:

Update your status regularly… but not too regularly

Status updates are an integral part of your Facebook marketing. They are how you share and interact with your Fans and keep them interested in your business and products you sell. It’s important that you update your Facebook status on a regular basis, but it’s also crucial that you don’t overwhelm your Fans by updating it too often and clogging up their Facebook Wall. If you do, many Fans will look at your updates as being “spammy” and it’s likely they will “unlike” your Page.

In order to avoid this, keep your status updates to 2-4 per week and always apply the age-old rule of ‘quality over quantity’; if you don’t have anything interesting to say, don’t say anything at all!

What should you include in your Facebook status updates?

- New products you have available (share pictures, too!).

Just make sure you don’t go too heavy on the promotional material: Try to keep a balance between updates that entertain and inform your Fans and ones that promote your business and or products.

- Ask your Fans questions that relate to the products you sell

Facebook has a cool Question feature which allows you to ask your Fans questions and for them to vote on answers that you pre-determine.

The best questions to ask are ones that relate to the products you are selling. For example, if you sell makeup, a good question might be “What ONE cosmetic item could you just not leave the house without?” followed by four or five optional answers your Fans can vote on.

-   Statistics or facts related to the products you sell

This is a good way to gauge some interest from your Fans and get them to notice you more: Everyone loves statistics! For instance, going with the makeup example, you could say something like “61% of women sleep with their makeup on. Do you commit this faux pas yourself?

Create a landing page

What’s the #1 goal of using Facebook for business (besides making more sales)? Getting as many targeted fans as possible and a landing page is one of the best ways to do that. A good landing page explains exactly what your business is about, or what products you sell and provides an incentive for new people to “like” your page.

What is a landing page?

A landing page is the first thing that new, potential Facebook Fans will see when they view your page.

Here’s what SaleHoo’s landing page looks like:

As you can see, it’s clear what SaleHoo is all about and there are some testimonials from some of our members, along with a big red arrow pointing to the “Like” button (which isn’t in this frame because I’m already a Fan).

It’s also common to include an incentive on your landing page to encourage new Fans to join such as a chance to win a prize when they become a Fan. The prize doesn’t need to be expensive or extravagant, but it should be something that appeals to a wide audience so that you can maximum possible reach from it.

How to create a Facebook landing page

In order to create a Facebook landing page, you need some basic HTML knowledge and a good design that will lure in more “likes”. If you don’t know HTML or how to design up a page, you can hire a freelace designer or developer from eLance.com where you can get professional designers to do one-off jobs for you at very affordable rates.

Want more ideas on how to make your Facebook marketing work? Become a Fan of SaleHoo and check out how we do it! (You’ll also see all our usual updates full of hot selling tips and industry news).

Do you use Facebook or any other forms of social media for your business? Has it helped increase sales? Share with me by leaving a comment below!