Looking to start a Facebook Fan Page? Smart move!  But before you debut it, you’ll want to make sure your Page is set up for success.

One of the very first things you need to do when you set up a new Page is to give it a title.

Tip: It’s important to use keywords in your Page’s title that are related to your business.  Think about how you want to be found in the search engines.

We all know that when people are looking for products or services these days, they’re not going to the Yellow Pages—they’re going to the Internet!  So, you want to be findable above all else. The good thing is that you don’t have to do any fancy search engine optimization type stuff, you just have to think about how people might search for what it is you and your business offers.

For example, a local photographer might not just title her Page “Jane Smith Photography,” if that is her business name, but she might also add something like “Jane Smith Photography—Philadelphia wedding portraits” or something similar.

Tip: Choose your Page’s title carefully—as of now, Facebook does not let you change it once your Page has been created.

You do want to try to strike a balance between being descriptive and not being too lengthy with your Page title because each time you add content to your Fan Page your title will be added to each post.

One nice thing about Fan Pages is that Facebook allows you to fill everything out to your liking and then publish it to go live only when you’re ready.

Tip: Go to “Edit Page” under your Fan Page pic then Settings–>Edit–>Published Status and set to “Unpublished (visible to no one but admins).”

You also want to choose a good, clear photo for your Page.  If you are an individual who is essentially the face of your business, you’ll want to consider a close-up head shot of yourself as opposed to a logo.  (People may recognize famous logos like Coca Cola or Major League Baseball, but not necessarily yours!)

Tip: Something that is little-known is that the ideal size for a Page’s picture is 200 pixels wide by 600 pixels high, so that’s something you might want to take into consideration.

A couple of other things to note: make sure you have filled out the Info tab on your Page will all the relevant information about your business.  It’s up to you whether you want to include items like your phone number, address or hours, but at least be sure to give a little background on your company and your website and/or blog URL.

There is also a small box underneath your picture where you can add a little blurb about your business.  I always encourage people to fill this out because it is one of the first things the eyes are drawn to after your picture.  I call it the “5 second commercial” box—you can use it to give a quick description as well as provide your web address.

Tip: When placing your URL in this box, make sure to include the http:// part of the address—this makes it clickable.

Hopefully, those tips help get you off to a running start with your own Fan Page.

But, if you’re reading this and still wondering what the point of a Fan Page is, here are what I consider the top four goals that you should be aiming for when using Facebook to market your business:

1) To get found by those who are looking for your services or products;
2) To find and interact with current and potential clients and customers;
3) To build a community around your business; and
4) To create awareness of your content and offerings.

Oh, and come visit me on my Fan Page if you’d like and feel free to share the link to your own if you have one in the comments below. 🙂