8 Reasons Every Direct Seller Needs a Facebook Fan Page

By Guest Blogger Karen Clark

Social media is a natural match for direct sellers who want to reach more people in their businesses. After all, the entire business model of direct sales is based on being social! Home party businesses thrive on word of mouth marketing, relationship building, and active participation. Direct sellers love to share their excitement about new products and the benefits of being involved in their company, they love meeting people where they are and inviting friends to join in. And most of all, direct sellers want to have FUN! Besides the traditional methods, all of this can also be accomplished through social media today, and one of the most effective platforms are Facebook Fan Pages.

Facebook Fan Pages are distinctly different than your regular Facebook Profile that you get when you log in. Your Profile is your personal space on the Facebook ‘web’ and you get to pick and choose who you let into your circle, what items people can see, and how much you want to see of theirs. Even though you can have up to 5,000 ‘friends’ it really is a closed network, and is not designed to be used for business purposes. In fact, most people are offended when they receive marketing messages from their Facebook friends, because their primary reason for being there is to keep in touch with people they know, and follow what is happening in their lives.

A Facebook Fan Page on the other hand, is completely public, you have no control over who joins in or not, or which items they see on your Fan Page. Everything is visible to the entire Facebook ‘web’ on a Fan Page. However, when you’re in business, public is a good thing! Public, and being visible to “everyone” on Facebook means exposure to new people you would not normally be exposed to, and aren’t we all trying to create NEW business for ourselves? Fan Pages have this advantage and I believe every direct seller – unless company policy forbids it – should have one. Here are eight reasons why:

1. Fan Pages are indexed by the search engines such as Google and Yahoo because they are public. Profiles are not, because they are private. This means that your Fan Page becomes like a mini-website, another doorway into your business that the entire world could have access to with a few clicks. Use some good keywords that people are searching for when you post and you’ll be on your way to establishing an online presence in no time.
    
2. Fan Pages are highly customizable, whereas Profiles are not. With the Static FBML application, you can create custom welcome pages, product pages, a page about your Why story, or about the benefits of hosting a party with you – just about anything is possible! This cannot be done on the Profile.
    
3. People who “Like” Fan Pages are opting in to hear about your business. They are taking an active step to participate in conversations with you as a business person, to hear the occasional marketing message, or to find out your latest specials or new products. This means that those who are on your Fan Page are highly qualified leads – they want to hear from you! They’re looking forward to hearing from you. When someone befriends you on Facebook, they are not necessarily interested in your business.
    
4. Fan Pages can be personalized so that you have your own home on the web even if you do not have your own website or blog. With company replicated sites, our options for expressing ourselves are limited – sometimes the only thing we can edit is our contact information, with a few exceptions. Through your Fan Page, you can share your stories, give advice, share helpful information or articles about related topics, and be of service to your Fans in ways that can’t be done through a shopping site.
    
5. Fan Pages give you a chance to engage and interact with your customers and potential customers. As you share information with them, they comment or “like” your posts and you are able to respond and have two-way or even group communication about the topic. This leads to rich interaction which builds trust and rapport with your visitors. On a Fan Page you all share something in common to start with – the love of your product or business opportunity. There’s lots to talk about, and your Fans enjoy interacting with you.
    
6. Fan Pages breed advocates for your business. When you share a video, a link or a photo, clicking the Share link is so easy to do! Your Fans will then share your information with their friends, which exposes your business to even more people. On a Profile your friends will share to their friends as well, but you will only receive exposure for your personal profile that way, and if their friends are not your friends already, the only way for them to find out more about you is to request friendship. With a Fan Page, your Fans’ friends can easily click your Fan Page name, and click Like to get involved.
    
7. Fan Pages are measurable. When you manage a Fan Page, Facebook installs “Insights” which are statistics about your Fan Page. Facebook will tell you how many times your posts received comments or “likes” as well as how many Fans came on or left, and where they came from. It will give you a chart over the last month that shows interesting facts about the success of your Fan Page, and you can easily monitor and adjust your activities. There is no such thing on a Profile so there is no way to measure your success other than watching the number of friends go up and down, which is a very poor judge.
    
8. It’s free! There is no better value for your time or money as a direct seller marketing online than creating a Facebook Fan Page. Go to any Fan Page, and on the bottom left is a link for “Create a Fan Page for Your Business.” Click that link and follow the instructions. A basic Fan Page can be created in under 10 minutes. You can find tutorials online to teach yourself how to customize it even further or if you are pressed for time, there are social media consultants like myself who will walk you through it or set it up for you.

Take advantage of the opportunity we have within Facebook. It is not going away any time soon, and creating a Fan Page presents a fun, free, and fabulous additional doorway into your business. For more information and training about Facebook Fan Pages for direct sellers, visit my website at http://www.mybusinesspresence.com. Click Products to download a Fan Page audio recording, and enter your email address for a free Do’s and Don’ts of Facebook report. Do you have a specific question about Facebook Fan Pages? Feel free to ask the question in the comments below and we can all learn together!

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Taking her own business as a direct seller to the highest level of the compensation in less than seven years was just the start for Karen Clark. As the Director of Consultant Development for the corporation, she created training programs for the entire field before founding My Business Presence. Now a popular speaker and author, Karen is dedicated to helping all independent distributors master the world of social media, including effective blogging, web design, netiquette and search engine optimization. Karen has co-authored two books – Incredible Business and Direct Selling Power, and is the Northern California Chapter Coordinator for the Direct Selling Women’s Alliance. Karen has been honored with two awards from the DSWA, the Spirit Award in 2008 and the Ambassador of the Year Award in 2010. She lives with her husband and 3 children in Sonoma County, CA. Find out more about My Business Presence and connect with Karen on Facebook at http://www.mybusinesspresence.com.

To Tweet or Not to Tweet. That is the Question

By Guest Blogger Melissa Dery

It seems like “everyone” is tweeting these days; from celebrities to politicians, corporations and even your own Direct Sales Company may be tweeting. Twitter can feel a little intimidating at first glance, I know I felt lost the first time I was on Twitter. What I found was that it has its own language, a fast moving pace, and a limited amount of space to express yourself (140 characters to be exact), but if you understand the real value and power of Twitter you will soon see what all the fuss is about.

Twitter is like warm chatter. When I was a consultant in direct sales my director was wonderful at warm chatter, she had a kind and friendly way to approach people when she was out and about. She took me with her a few times and showed me her approach. She would wander around the store and casually notice what people where shopping for, and look for something of interest to spark up a conversation. One thing she would often do was comment on someone’s earrings; she loved earrings so it was a natural and genuine conversation starter for her (for me it was about the shoes!). Her conversations really never were about getting the person’s contact information, or trying to sell her something, it really honestly and genuinely was about meeting someone new.

Your approach to Twitter should be similar to the way you warm chatter:

• Take a look around – what are people “tweeting” about (tweeting is just another word for chatting or talking). Chances are you can relate to something someone is talking about.
• Make a friendly comment – like my Director chatting about earrings or me about shoes, you will find something to comment on. I made the most wonderful connection with someone on Twitter who had tweeted about her allergies! We tweeted back and forth and our common “problem” with allergies and that created a genuine connection.
• It’s not about getting something, it’s about the connection – Twitter is a way to network, to meet people you may have never had a chance to meet before. You will make friends, and maybe even prospects or customers but that isn’t what it’s all about, it’s about the connection you can make with people all over the world in short 140 character conversations.

I’ve made some wonderful connections via Twitter, including my connection to Julie Anne Jones! Approaching Twitter like you would any other social situation in “real” life by bringing your kind and authentic self to the party you will find a genuine and warm reception. Oh and while you’re there, please do stop by and tweet me a hello, my handle is @TheGoldenRuleVA … It’s always nice to meet new friends on Twitter!

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Melissa H. Dery is The Golden Rule Virtual Assistant (VA) providing administrative support services to leaders in Direct Sales. A former direct sales consultant, who also grew up in a direct sales family, Melissa has a personal understanding of the “behind the scenes” work required to help your business run and grow.

With over 20 years of experience as an administrative assistant, Melissa took her talents as an assistant and combined it with her desire to help support those in direct sales to become The Golden Rule VA. Where her mission is to treat your business as if it were her very own, with respect, creativity and professionalism…it’s her rule!

Melissa is married to her best friend and lives in New Hampshire with her two boys. She has a Bachelor Degree in Business Management and a Ducktoratte Degree from Disney University. She loves to drink coffee, run and most of all go camping with her family. You can learn more about Melissa and what she offers at http://thegoldenruleva.com.

August is Guest Blogger Month!

One of the things I've learned over the past few years is the power of networking in my business. As I've increased my network through social media, I've met and become friends with so many amazing women who have such great information. I've learned more than I can say from these women and I know my business has grown in great part because of what they've taught me.

Last month, I asked several of them to volunteer to write a guest blog post for this month. I had only planned on featuring four guest bloggers, but since every single one of them enthusiastically agreed to provide a post, I've decided to feature all of them over the course of the entire month! I'm thrilled because I know you'll be learning a ton this month if you take the time to read and follow their advise.

Here's a list of my guest bloggers:

Melissa H. Dery, The Golden Rule Virtual Assistant (VA)

Melissa provides administrative support services to leaders in Direct Sales. A former direct sales consultant, who also grew up in a direct sales family, Melissa has a personal understanding of the “behind the scenes” work required to help your business run and grow. With over 20 years of experience as an administrative assistant, Melissa took her talents as an assistant and combined it with her desire to help support those in direct sales to become The Golden Rule VA. Where her mission is to treat your business as if it were her very own, with respect, creativity and professionalism…it’s her rule!

You can check out what Melissa has to offer at http://thegoldenruleva.com.

Rhonda Moskowitz, M.A., Practical Solutions Parent Coaching, LLC

Our "Ask the Expert" speaker for August, Rhonda is a trained educator, administrator and parenting consultant. She has extensive experience working with child-oriented issues both from the parents' perspective and from that of educators. She holds certification in parent coaching and a Master's Degree in K-12 Learning and Behavior Disabilities. The 10 years of experience she has working in schools and another 20 years in private practice allow her to assist the client with practical information, consultation and guidance.

You can learn more about her at www.practicalsolutionsparentcoaching.com
 

Heather Amy Price, Direct Sales Consultant

Heather Price is a mom of AWESOME three year old twins, both with various special needs. While they’re in preschool or sleeping, she is a sales director for Mary Kay Cosmetics and a distributor for Send Out Cards. Heather has ten years of experience in direct sales.

You can learn more about Heather at her website: http://heatheramyprice.com/ or on her facebook page: http://facebook.com/heatheramypricedotcom

 

Karen Clark, Direct Sales Speaker and Author

Taking her own Story Time Felts business to the highest level of the compensation in less than seven years was just the start for Karen. As the Director of Consultant Development for the corporation, she created training programs for the entire field before founding My Business Presence. Now a popular speaker and author, Karen is dedicated to helping all independent distributors master the world of social media, including effective blogging, web design, netiquette and search engine optimization. Her wealth of practical knowledge, her ability to simplify even the most advanced social media concepts and her fun, friendly style makes Karen stand out as a resource for direct sellers interested in increasing their online presence.

Learn more about how she can support you at www.MyBusinessPrescence.com.

Kelly Wissink, Direct Sales Leader

Kelly is one of eight top leaders in her company and has achieved this goal while homeschooling three very cool kids and spoiling her high school sweetheart turned husband.

She would love to connect with you on Facebook, “Kelly Wissink”, and at her website, http://www.TeamCandleBiz.com

 

Lisa Robbin Young, Direct Sales Coach and Trainer

Lisa has an extensive coaching and training background. Beginning with her team development in direct sales, Lisa’s coaching and training expertise spans nearly two decades. She is a certified Elite leadership trainer (DSWA), and is purusing certification as a credentialed business coach. Her specialties are online marketing, goal attainment, and self-worth.

You can learn more about her at http://lisarobbinyoung.com

 

Kim DeYoung, The Original Metro Mom & Get it Done Girl

There are all kinds of entrepreneurial moms—ranging from stay-at-home moms to soccer moms to CEO moms. Kim DeYoung is all three. She’s really the original Metromom—a driven, evolving woman committed to her family, her career and to managing her own home-based business with class. Dynamic, creative and eminently entrepreneurial Kim is the founder of Metromom.com and The GET IT DONE Action Club.

 

 

Shannon Bruce, PCC, CPT, Certified Professional Coach & Speaker

Shannon is a Mompreneur Success Coach, Trainer, and Co-Author of the book “Direct Selling Power: Expert Advice to Accelerate your Business”. As a catalyst for life transformation, Shannon empowers self-employed women to break through their barriers to reconnect with what really matters, calling them forth to boldly go after their inspired life vision with courage, confidence and authenticity.

For more information about Shannon and her work you can visit www.shannonbruce.com and www.yourgreaterpurpose.com.

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