We all know how popular Facebook is and what role it does play in our lives. When it was first introduced, no one would have thought that it will become a necessity and here we are, making it an essential part of our lives.
Keeping individual interests aside, if we talk about businesses, Facebook plays even a major role than it does for personal users. This platform is so huge that any business can find people of their interest, and that’s what they want to grow and make a strong presence. In all these years since its introduction, Facebook has evolved so much and has given so many features to its users that have changed the way they used to think. It won’t be wrong to say that using Facebook, one can start their small business with little investment and grow it later on.
In this post, we will be going to talk about one of the greatest features of Facebook that is helping businesses to grow fast and well. The feature we are going to talk about is ‘Facebook Groups.’ These groups help businesses find people of similar interests and share ideas. Let us see it in detail.
What is a Facebook group?
A Facebook group is generally created by an organization or business for promotional activities and to connect with people or businesses that share similar interests. A group allows businesses to make a community with participants who can guide, provide knowledge, and solve queries related to your business’s niche. It is also a platform to create discussions and debates on related topics. Groups let users connect with what entices them and what they like. Plus, they also let you share what you know. Group admins can decide who can join and who cannot by creating the closed or open group according to their preferences.
Why businesses require Facebook groups?
We are very much aware of the importance Facebook has for businesses and what it can deliver. Now, along with a Facebook account for your business, if you have a Facebook group as well which is centered towards your brand, it will be the icing on a cake.
Using a Facebook group along with the marketing strategy can create a huge impact on your business. It helps build a community of people who love your brand and the products or services you offer. A group that is maintained well can improve the value of your brand and products, and that will show up later on in increased sales and leads.
As we said, that the group will be centered on your brand and the niche of your business, thus posting content related to that will show your expertise in what you do and people will trust your more. Besides, groups also allow participants to ask questions, and giving relevant & to the point answers to them will build your authority.
If your answers are satisfactory, they will help create a base of loyal customers who will prefer your brand over others and keep coming back. That’s how small businesses become big as one-time customers cannot help you establish strong.
What is the difference between a Facebook page and a Facebook group?
Facebook Page
When we talk about a Facebook page, it is generally created to run ads, promotions, and connect with your target audience to ensure your active presence. A Facebook page is visible to everyone present on Facebook, irrespective of the fact whether they follow you or not or are in your friend list or not. A Facebook page gives liberty to everyone on Facebook to connect by becoming a fan. This way, they can get the latest updates about the page in their feed and interact.
Facebook Group
Unlike pages, Facebook Group is a bit narrow which focuses on building a small community of people who share similar interests. A group is a place dedicated to group communications over a particular area or niche. Businesses create a Facebook group to build their own community and ensure a better reputation for their brand.
A group gives the flexibility to either make it publicly available, require the approval of admin to join, or keep it private and get members via invitation only. Whenever something is shared in the group, it will appear to all the group member’s Facebook feed and they can interact there, by sharing their views. It is the best place for discussions and debates around a topic within the members.
How to create a Facebook group?
Now when you know what a Facebook group is and what it can do for your business, it’s time to see how to create it. Let us see a step by step process to create a Facebook group.
- Login to your Facebook account and the top right, you’ll see ‘+’ sign. Click on that and a list will open where you’ll see post, story, life event, and more. In the list, the next thing you need to do is to click on ‘group.’
Once ‘group’ is clicked, a form will open having three sections:
- Group Name
- Choose Privacy
- Choose Friends
It is important for you to choose a relevant name for the group according to your business. It is always better to name a group that completely justifies the products or services you offer.
In the privacy section, you will find two options, public and private. Choose the privacy accordingly, if you want anyone to see the posts of the group and who all are in there, then select public. While if you want only group members to get details of your group, then choosing private will be the best. When you choose private, you also need to select whether you want it to be visible to anyone or you only want group members to find it, i.e. hidden.
When you are done with the above two sections, it’s time to choose the members of your group from the list or via emails. When everything is done click create and now you have a Facebook group.
- Now select the appropriate cover photo for the group and upload that.
- Next, you need to set the privacy of your group accordingly from the notifications tab and more tab. Plus, never forget to add a relevant description so that people can know what this group is all about and like-minded people can join it.
- Once everything is set, promote your group in the newsletters or even by sending personalized emails to people who you want to join the group. Plus, you can also promote it in your social media accounts.
How to use a Facebook group for your business?
Now, when you have successfully created the group, you must know how to use it effectively to get the desired results. Let us see how to use the group for promoting & growing your business.
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Don’t be self-obsessed
We know that the Facebook group is created as one of your marketing strategies, but this is not a platform to only promote your products. If you do this, it will create a negative impact on your brand. Though the group is created by you, yet it should focus on giving knowledge, sharing thoughts, and clearing queries of group members about the niche you serve. Plus, it could also be used for discussions.
With discussions and knowledge sharing, you need to find out how your products or services can solve the problems and how relevantly you can talk about them. In groups, you are addressing a community not your target audience, hence, you need to be selective & careful about what you say. It’s a matter of your business’s success, so be humble & generous, and show your expertise in the group rather than doing sales.
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Set rules
A business group must be managed in an ethical way. Thus, it is important for you to set the guidelines and rules that every group member has to follow. Guidelines could be about which type of content you want them to post, your expectations from the group, and what you don’t want on the group.
Considering this will make sure that only the right people join your group and you get the most out of it. plus, better communication helps in building lasting relationships and that could act as a defining tool for your brand’s success. To create rules, you can use the ‘about’ section of your group to explain every one. Besides, you can also share posts on how you want members to act on the group and pin those posts so that they stay on top always.
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Don’t leave the group unattended
It is a very important point that you should not leave the group idle. Being the admin, your active participation is necessary for the group. If you do not share relevant posts regularly, members will start to lose their interest, and once it happens, it will be difficult for you to get them back.
The best way to participate actively in your group is by sharing posts that require discussion or active participation of group members. For example, you can ask for suggestions on a particular topic related to your niche. Like if you have a food-related business, you can ask members to share unique recipes.
Another best thing you can do is share unique and great content. Because when members will like what you post, they will freely share their ideas. Remember, to get long-term benefits, be consistent with your posts. Plus, never forget to share your views on what others post as well.
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Promote it
Remember, if you don’t tell people about your Facebook page, they will not know about it. so, it is important to promote your Facebook group once everything is set. One of the best ways of doing this is by linking your Facebook group to your Facebook page. Rest, you can manage whom you want to enter and whom you not.
Group promotion could also be done by joining other relevant groups and smartly promoting it there in comments. You can also promote your group by recommending other Facebook groups of similar niches, and they will do the same to return the favor.
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Respond to posts
One thing you must remember having a Facebook group is that you never ignore what group members say to your post. Make it a habit of responding humbly to posts and comments. Doing this is one of the best ways of increasing engagement and getting improved brand recognition.
Benefits of having Facebook groups
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Highly targeted audience
This is one of the main benefits of having a Facebook group. Unlike the Fb page, here only people with similar interests can join. A group organizes healthy discussions on a particular topic related to your niche and any of the members can share their views & knowledge. On a group, all posts revolve around a particular niche that is relevant to your business, and hence, it is also a great way to learn and connect with entrepreneurs of your business’s niche. Here, everyone will understand what you post because all share similar interests, thus, Facebook groups provide a great opportunity for growth and recognition.
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Provide extra value to customers
A Facebook group can also be used to solve common problems faced by your customers regarding your products or services. Thus, it could become a platform where they can discuss their problems. Besides, it could also be used to educate customers about your brand and the products or services you offer and you can ask them for new ideas that could be incorporated in your future strategies.
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Learn, learn, and learn
More than promotion, a Facebook group is a learning platform where you can connect with people of similar interests and get acquainted with what they know about that. If you don’t know, then you must, that through Facebook groups you can learn from the industry experts and their knowledge will be of great help in building your business and ensure better growth. Plus, it is a platform where you might come to know about your business that you have never thought of or even heard of. For that, all you need to do is participate in discussions and share what you know about that topic.
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Stay updated
Another key benefit of having a Facebook group is that you can get information about any major events, shows, conferences, or expo marts that hold importance to your business. For that, you need to stay in touch with the audience present in the group with active participation. Plus, you also need to share such information if you come to know about it. Remember, people will reciprocate the way you act. So, be generous and useful to them.
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Get organic engagement
Organic is what search engine bots like and even it is preferred by famous search engine platforms like Google. Facebook groups help your social media account get organic engagement by providing value to members through your unique, informative, and relevant posts. Plus, with better engagement, you can also see an increase in the organic traffic of your website. For that, you only need to provide valuable information and solutions to the queries.
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Better and high lead generation
As you know, that Facebook group can increase engagement, and that too organically. Thus, getting organic means people are interested in your brand, and the products or services you offer entices them. This also increases the chances that people will directly visit your website and they might subscribe to your posts willingly or whatever your call to action would be. In this way, you will experience improved and a high number of leads that have a great chance of converting into customers.
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Get genuine feedback
Before you think of doing something new with your business, it is important to get suggestions from people who are experts and who share similar interests. For that, which could be the better platform than the Facebook group. Here you can ask questions related to your brand’s niche and can expect honest answers from the members. Plus, you might also get some great ideas that could make your strategy more effective.
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Build your own community and become a part of other’s as well
Through Facebook groups, you can build a community of like-minded people where everyone can interact with each other and share what they have. This is a great way of improving relationships with your audience. Having a community where people can share their views makes it easy for businesses to get introduced without forcing anyone to buy or follow what you do.
Plus, to widen up your reach, you can also join groups of similar niches, where you can help with the knowledge you have and gain from others.
The Bottom Line
There is one catch when it comes to digital marketing, and that is social media. It doesn’t matter what is your business’s niche and how small or big it is, social media always holds the key. If you are not present on this platform, you are missing a big part of your marketing strategy. There is a huge audience on social media that you will definitely find the one that suits best for the products or services you offer.
While talking about social media, you cannot keep Facebook aside as it is one of the platforms that created hype among people. If we talk about the current scenario, Facebook has become an essential part of human lives. Plus, it also holds equal importance for businesses. To promote their brand via Facebook, along with creating an account, businesses also take the help of Facebook page and Facebook groups.
This post was purely dedicated to Facebook groups on how they are helpful for businesses, what role do they play in the success, their benefits, and even how you can create a Facebook group. It is not just a feature, rather it is an important tool that helps businesses create their own community for important discussions with experts and people with similar interests and show the audience about their expertise & capabilities.
We hope that reading this post would help you in getting the best of Facebook groups and building a community that everyone in your niche admires.