By Ed Avis
You probably have a Facebook page for your costume shop, and you may even keep it regularly updated with fresh posts and special offers. But are you taking full advantage of it? Here are seven tips from three Facebook experts on how to make sure you’re making the most of this social networking site.
1. Post photos of costumes you are making, along with appropriate questions. For example, post two versions of a King Lear costume and ask your fans which one they prefer.
“With the costume industry you have a built-in source of content that’s interesting to people,” says Ken Course, a small business marketing expert and proprietor of kencourse.com. “As you’re creating new things, you have the opportunity to create content that will get conversation going, and conversation is what matters most.” Course explains that posting the two versions of a costume will stimulate a debat—but with a positive spin.
2. Create a blog and post information from it on your Facebook page. You’re probably an expert in some area of costuming—at least in your community—so you should share that expertise in a way that attracts attention to your shop.
“Small business owners who blog have a huge advantage,” says Lorrie Thomas Ross, CEO of Web Marketing Therapy, Inc. “Blogs not only help increase your website's search visibility (giving the engines more frequent content to feed on and index) but it also elevates your credibility.”
As Ross explains, you can share blog posts on your Facebook page to keep content current and fresh. It’s a great way to remind current customers you are out there (“let's not forget ‘make new friends, but keep the old!—your best customers are your current ones!” she says). You can even share and re-share the blog posts over time.
“Fun fact: many of my clients remove the date stamp from their blog posts so old (but good) content from years ago can be re-shared,” Ross says. “Recycling is not only good for the planet, but it's great for your Facebook page too! Repurposing blog posts on your Facebook page is so easy. You can schedule the posts. I recommend shortening the url (use bit.ly or Hootsuite) or removing the url altogether once the page loads under your post. When you blog has photos, they load when you post to Facebook, adding more visual appeal and customer interest.”
3. Partner with people in your community who are interested in costuming, theater or dance, and create content that you can share. “The biggest thing working for me right now is co-created or co-branded content,” Course says. “You could interview people or attend local events that are compatible with your business and take photos or interview them with your smartphone. Then share that content with that person and ask them to tag your page or account. It’s best if you give them a sample post that is correctly tagged, because they might not want to do that work.”
4. Include lots of images. In addition to photos of costumes, local events and people, try adding other images to your site. Ross uses a design web site called Canva.com to create eye-catching Facebook images. “Even mere mortals with no design skills like me can make images sized perfectly for Facebook,” Ross says. “Canva has fonts and images and templates to use and you can upload your brand’s font, logos and images too. Share quotes, words of wisdom, and follow holidays.”
5. Find and join Facebook groups that include potential customers. “That way you’ll receive exposure to potentially hundreds of new viewers with just this one step,” says David Bakke, a financial author and contributor to MoneyCrashers.com. For example, there are several Facebook groups for costume designers, theater teachers and directors and zombie fans. You could even create your own group—for example, a group for wardrobe people at local theaters and dance groups might attract a lot of potential customers for your shop.
6. Link your Facebook posts to and from your other social media accounts. “Most folks are involved in more than one social account, so be sure to talk about your Facebook account on Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter,” Bakke suggests. “That’s on the best ways to increase customer traffic on your Facebook page.”
7. Consider purchasing some highly targeted ads on Faceboook. “I think every good strategy should include some budget for Facebook ads,” Course says. “For a very small budget, you can reach out to a very targeted audience. Short videos – 15 to 20 seconds – in the ads reach the maximum audience in the cheapest way.” Facebook makes buying, creating and targeting ads easy with its Ad Center. You can target ads by demographics, interest, geography and other characteristics, and set a daily or total-campaign budget.
Facebook is a giant source of connections for a community, and your costume shop can benefit by tapping those connections. These seven tips are a start!
Ed Avis is the publisher of The Costumer magazine.