Facebook fan pages are nothing without the fans, and attracting fans to a brand new fan page must be done quickly in order to spread the buzz about a product or service on the worldís largest social network. Anyone who has ever created a Facebook fan page knows that attracting new fans goes beyond just inviting people you already know because you soon reach a limit. Perhaps friends of friends will spread the word, but that only goes so far. Real Facebook fan page success happens when you reach thousands and do it quickly. But how is it done? The secret lies in a few trade secrets of the most successful Facebook fan pages:

Get Noticed with Keywords: New changes in Facebook fan pages allow you to maximize your online exposure with the use of keywords. By adding to your fan page specific words or phrases related to your business, using them in your URL and including them in your public postings and status updates, you can increase the likelihood of your Facebook fan page coming up as a search result on Google. The beauty of key words is that you are more likely to find people who share your passions and interests for a particular field, or attract shoppers searching for the exact product you sell. Once they find you on Facebook and click ìLike,î youíve got yourself a new fan and a potential new customer.

Reach Out with SEO: Search engine optimization, or SEO, is a proven strategy for increasing exposure of a website or brand name. SEO operates in conjunction with major search engines and takes advantage of search engine "crawling" that seeks out optimal search results in articles and blogs, and can be used to attract Facebook fans, too. By creating timely and relevant articles or blog postings with popular search phrases included in the title and throughout the text, you increase the chances of Google targeting your site or article in search results. Simply link readers back to your Facebook page with a "Follow Me on Facebook" button and the odds are in your favor that they will click "Like" and become a long-term fan. With SEO, it is important to make your articles engaging and informative; packing your text with keywords and phrases may initially capture search engine attention, but supplying well-written and attractive articles or blogs will make readers want to know more about you and your product or service. For writing help, visit one of the many online freelance writer forums and find someone to create affordable and effective articles for you.

Make the Most of Photos: Using photos to promote your page and reach out to prospective Facebook fans is inexpensive and highly effective. One means of using photos to get Facebook fans is to take a photo related to your fan page or business and tag the friends of your current fans. Considering that most people on Facebook have nearly 150 friends, you can quickly reach a large number of people in no time at all. Those friends of your fans will receive a message that they have been tagged in a photo. In nearly every case, they will be curious to see the picture and be led right to your fan page. Itís simple, but it really works!

Photos can also be used as a promotion gimmick that has shown great results. Ask your Facebook fans to take photos of themselves using and enjoying your product and offer a discount or special prize or promotion for those who post them on your Wall. Go ahead and tag their friends in the photos to invite them over to your fan page and see what happens!

Link Up with Successful Sites: Find a website that attracts the kinds of fans you want for your fan page. Contact the page administrator and offer a mutually beneficial link agreement, in which you promote their site on your website or fan page, and they will do the same for you. You can also post links on fan pages similar to yours to spread the word to like-minded Facebookers, which is simple and easy to do.

Spend Five Bucks: Networking sites like www.fiverr.com offer fan page builders unique opportunities to link up with thousands of potential future fans for just a few dollars. On fiverr.com, Facebook users with hundreds and sometimes thousands of friends offer to invite all of their friends to check out your fan page and it only costs you $5. It's a quick and simple way to spread the word about your new fan page at lightning speed!

Make Them Click "Like": If some of your fan page material is protected and accessible only to those who click the "Like" button, itís a great way to generate some excitement and encourage people to become fans. An effective way to do this is with coupons, giveaways and special promotions advertised on a customized landing page for first-time visitors to your page. If you can create enough interest and intrigue, youíre sure to collect new fans who are excited to learn more about what you have to offer.

Creating a Facebook fan base in a short period of time is not an impossible dream. Even for people with limited budgets and few marketing skills, it is entirely possible to spread the word about a new Facebook fan page without being a computer expert or knowing thousands of people. Facebook fan pages grow in popularity when you know the tricks of the trade. Regardless of how you choose to reach out to prospective fans, make sure that the Facebook fan page you are endorsing is full of entertaining features that will make people glad they found you. Post regularly, keep information current and timely and you will keep your new fans eager for more.

Bill Enross knows why Facebook is the hottest social media network in the world and how to help your business thrive with Facebook fan page applications and Facebook marketing tips. Call Bill at 508.203.1660 to learn proven ways to monetize Facebook and traffic generation techniques for Facebook that get results.

Let's look at some ways to keep your social media groups happy.

Have a great product

Start off on the right foot and give your customers what they really want from you. It doesn't matter how many thousands of people are following you on the web, you need to step up and offer consistent quality in your products and services. Because if you don't that same crowd will turn on you like piranhas and bad-mouth your business on the viral network

Keep your promises

Be a business of your word and don't make promises you can't keep. If you promised to send free gifts to subscribers or to launch a product on a certain day or to give a special discount, then do everything in your power to make it happen as you said. You don't want to be leaving a trail of disappointed people who will never trust you again.

Respond Quickly

There are no excuses as to why you can't respond to a complaint, question or comment within at least one day. It might be a bit hard if you're running a one man show, but you can easily outsource to a social media manager or virtual assistant. If they are not responding fast enough, then you need to fire them because they are portraying the wrong image for you business

Positive Attitude

In business, it pays to be humble and willing to listen to what other people have to say, especially your customers. If you are really passionate about your business, it will reflect in your positive behavior as you handle your followers politely, happily and wholeheartedly. Getting short and frustrated even with finicky customer demands will backfire on you because all your negative communication will immediately be seen by all and sundry. And that will spread like wildfire through your social media network

Be human and personal

Always adopt a personal approach with your followers. Don't write to them as "Dear Subscriber"; instead be on a first name basis and write "Hi John". Infuse your personality into your customer service- even your quirkiness may stir up affection as people feel you are being real with them. Being human lets people know they are dealing with a fellow soul and not a computer software spitting out robotic answers.

Go the extra mile

The viral nature of social media your business' salvation or their nightmares so it's imperative as business owners to really go the extra mile to keep your followers happy. Sometimes even more than you normally would in your brick and mortar store.

I once read on a food blog how someone's kitchen mixer broke down and when she contacted the manufacturer, they told her to ship it them at her cost and they would see if they could fix it or not. What that company didn't realize this callous treatment was shared by this lady with tens of thousands of people who view her blog daily. Talk about bad publicity. If they had done their research and put on their customer service hat, they would have offered her free shipping and fixed the mixer for free or better yet offered a brand new mixer. Wouldn't that have been a cheaper and more effective marketing strategy than all their Adsense ads?

Here are seven tips to be connected to your customers online 24/7.

1. Automate blog posts. Blogging is a great way to connect with your audience on a very personal level. Unlike articles, blog posts can be written in first person and create a connection no other medium allows. The great thing about blog technology is that you can write your blog posts in advance and schedule them to be posted each day, thus enhancing your customer contact.

2. Incorporate RSS. RSS technology enables customers and website visitors to subscribe to your online content. You can utilize RSS for your website and blog to notify your audience each time new content is added. It’s a great way to connect to your customers on a regular basis.

3. Automate Twitter posts (but don’t forget to interact too). Twitter is a handy social marketing tool because it can also be set up to post on Facebook. And with one of any number of tools, like Seesmic, you can write your posts in advance and schedule them just like a blog. This give you double the opportunity to market your new content, promotions and business-related news, and also provides you with an ongoing opportunity to connect with your customers around the clock.

4. Consider outsourcing 24/7 customer service if you sell products. Customer service is a valuable tool if you sell products. It enables your customers to ask questions right away and enhances the possibility that they’ll actually make a purchase. You can outsource this type of customer service or utilize a software solution. Services like Live Chat have improved conversion rates for some businesses by as much as 20%.

5. Autoresponders for inquiries. There’s nothing more frustrating for a customer than to send a question or comment and not know whether your comment has been received. Autoresponders can be set up quite easily to confirm receipt and to let your customer know how soon they’ll be hearing from you. It’s just good business to respond to customers immediately and autoresponders enable you to do this even when you’re away.

6. Autoresponders for purchases and opt-ins. Another great use for autoresponders is to set up thank you messages for purchases and opt-ins. Let your customers know you appreciate them automatically. You can also use this opportunity to up-sell or to provide more value by offering them something like a coupon on their next order. You can set up a series of autoresponders to be emailed weekly to stay in touch with customers too.

7. A consistent flow of valuable information. While e-newsletters have diminished over the past few years as blogs and social networking has taken off, newsletters, report clubs, and a consistent flow of valuable information is still appreciated by your online customers. Consider using regular emails to stay in contact with your customers on a regular basis and provide them with content and promotions they’ll appreciate.

As the Internet becomes more and more competitive and customers become more and more demanding, it pays to be available to them 24/7. Use technology to help you get the job done. A bigger, better bottom line will be the reward.

Step #1 – Understand social bookmarking

Social bookmarking is a method of storing, organizing, and searching web pages. It’s social because your vote helps to determine the popularity of the web pages – your vote and the votes of others. So not only are you able to help determine how a website ranks, you can also use this tool to help you find information that’s relevant and useful.

This is a great tool for internet marketers because if they get enough positive votes from the public, their value and exposure increases.

Step #2 – Understand the power of classified ads

Classified ads are a whole different ball game. They’re essentially a way for internet marketers to drive traffic to their site using websites devoted to ads. Craigslist is an example of a free classified advertising site. These sites are useful for internet marketers because they’re typically a very expensive way to drive targeted traffic to your website.

Step #3 – Combine them for ultimate recognition

Whatever social bookmarking tool(s) you use, you’ll probably have to register and get an account. Once you have an account, submitting your classified ads is as simple as visiting the page where it’s listed and bookmarking it.

For example, if you’re using Digg, you’ll simply click “Submit it.” Digg will take you to a new page where you can change or optimize the title and description. Digg also allows you to choose a thumbnail to go along with your description and asks you to put your submission in a category. Choose wisely so you receive the most traffic and votes.

The advantage of submitting classified ads to social bookmarking sites is that while most social bookmarking sites identify the person who submitted the web page, because the site doesn’t belong to you it means your self-promotion won’t be as obvious. Still, take some caution in promoting your own website exclusively because some sites will ban you.

Social bookmarking sites are fabulous because as the popularity of your page increases so too does your search engine exposure. And classified ads are a proven method of driving traffic to your website and increasing incoming links. Combining these two powerful strategies is good business sense!

#1 Ask a question. The easiest, and also most valuable and therefore popular, type of content to write is a “how to” article. However, how to articles can get quite complicated. For example, if you’re trying to write an article on how to lose weight or build a computer, that could easily be a book and narrowing it down to 500-ish words can be tricky.

So here’s the key, ask a question. Brainstorm one question or a series of questions people might ask on your topic. If, for example, you’re in the weight loss industry then one question might be, how do I find motivation to lose weight? Or How to eat healthy on vacation. Once you have your question, and quite likely your headline, then all you have to do is answer it with at least three points.

Voila! Add a nice introduction and a conclusion and you have a useful article that was easy to write. In fact, once you become accustomed to this process, and if you really know your industry, you can write an article that gets results in about ten minutes.

#2 Reference a current headline, controversy or trend in the industry. This is a great way to capitalize on a popular topic and thus drive traffic to your website. Additionally, it enables you to give your two cents on the topic. When you reference content written by an expert in your industry, it adds credibility to you and your business because it demonstrates that you’re on top of the trends in your industry.

#3 Answer a question you commonly receive from customers, prospects, associates, friends and family. This is an easy one because you know if you’ve been asked it before, perhaps several times, then the question is on the minds of others. Start your article by restating the question and then answer it. It’s often very easy to write these articles because you’ve already answered the question at least once. If you write conversationally, the words will flow quickly onto the page. This type of article gets results as well because it helps people find answers and information to questions they have.

#4 Lists. Finally, it must be said. Everyone loves lists. They’re particularly useful online when our attention span is perhaps a bit shorter than normal and we can quickly and easily scan the article for the useful information. Lists are also saved, printed, emailed and referenced so they’re great for generating repeat traffic. What kind of lists should you make? You can make a list of mistakes to avoid, products to try, websites to visit and so on. The opportunity for list making is virtually endless and they’re super easy to write.

Writing an article that gets results can be quick and easy. The next time you’re in a crunch, try the answer a question approach or the list. You’ll be surprised how easy they are to write and how much your website visitors appreciate them.

To say that Facebook dominated the pre dinner conversation at our table of ten would not be quite true, however by my calculations Facebook was mentioned in no less than five separate conversations. The word Facebook was used in the normal course of conversation much the same as you'd hear telephone, letter, post card, and more recently eMail.

Facebook is a communication tool being used by over 350 million people ( December 09) every day, and if your business is ignoring this marketing phenomenon, you're going to be toast faster than you think. Please understand there is a proper way to use this amazing platform, it's not rocket science, and you can do it yourself if you take the time to learn the ropes. If you don't have the time to learn, you'd better get some help, because the 'do nothing' option is one way to be sure you'll successfully drive your business into the ground.

What does an SEO company do?

Before you can decide whether to outsource your SEO tasks, it’s important to know what most SEO companies do. Most search engine optimization companies, whether they’re a one-person show or have several employees, offer the following services:

1. Website audit. The first thing most SEO companies will do is analyze your site as it stands today. Is it being indexed? What is working and what isn’t?

2. Keyword research. The next step many companies will take is to conduct keyword research. That means researching the keywords your customers are using to find you.

3. Recommendations. The third step is typically for a SEO company to provide you with a strategy. They may include manual submission to search engines for indexing as part of the services they provide, or they may not. They will most definitely have outlined a content and link building strategy for you. What happens next is where firms begin to differ.

They’ll almost always provide HTML coding service to tweak your site optimally for the search engines. Then they’ll either provide all of the services to you, including content writing, or they may simply offer to make sure the links are properly inserted and you’ll have someone else write the content. They may tell you how they suggest you build incoming links, or they may offer to handle the process for you. They may also offer tracking and maintenance to ensure the SEO efforts are working.

So one of the ways to evaluate if a service is worth hiring is to compare the services they offer with your needs. Here are a few other factors to compare them by:

* Their reputation in the industry. It’s important to make sure the SEO company has a good reputation, not only for knowing what they’re doing and getting results but also for using legitimate and respected techniques.

* The policies and procedures. When and how will they communicate with you? How long will the processes take? How often do they evaluate their results? These are just some of the questions to consider when evaluating a potential provider.

* Finally, what does it cost to hire them? Remember, you get what you pay for so hiring a dollar store SEO expert will likely not get you the results you’re looking for. The most expensive SEO jobs — costing up to $10,000 to $20,000 a month – are only required if you have hundreds of product pages. Many experts charge by the page and prices average around $100/page but can certainly be higher or lower.

Analyzing ROI

One of the questions you’ll want to ask yourself before outsourcing your SEO is how much it’s worth to you. In this calculation, you’ll want to consider your hourly value. If it takes you four hours to accomplish what an SEO expert can accomplish in an hour and you’re losing $50/hour trying to code your site when it would have cost you $100 to use an SEO expert, then yes – it might be worthwhile to outsource this task.

That being said, SEO is something you can most certainly accomplish yourself. If you do a bit of research and are willing to experiment with the results then it can be quite satisfying, and profitable, to watch your website grow in the page rankings. So, does it pay to outsource your SEO? It depends on where you value your time and money and the SEO expert you hire.

1. Offer insight about your industry. When you’re online at your social networking site of choice it’s absolutely important to participate, but how you participate can make all the difference. If you’re merely commenting about what you had for dinner and your new car, then you’re not optimizing the site or your time. Instead, make sure to offer insight about your industry. This doesn’t mean every post has to link to an article or post of yours.

You can link to relevant content on other sites, offer quotes and data. So while it’s great to share your personality on these sites, it’s also important to establish your credibility and authority. Provide relevant and useful information, and people will automatically go to your site to learn more about you and what you have to offer.

2. Use attention-grabbing headlines. Embrace copywriting techniques and post curiosity-driven headlines. Use questions – for example, “Do you want to know how to make $100 in 5 minutes?” You can also use comments, controversy, how-to statements and other attention-grabbing headlines. Don’t forget scarcity and urgency too. “Only one day left to grab your copy of________”

3. Offer giveaways. People still like getting something for free and you can promote your freebies and giveaways on social networking sites. Reports, online courses or tutorials, blueprints, ebooks and video and audio content are all great ways to motivate traffic to your site.

4. Use special promotions for your unique social media audience. If you have Facebook fans, consider offering them special promotions for signing up and for being a fan. You can do the same thing if you have a twitter account and so on. Consider giving each new friend/follower a coupon via a direct message to them. That coupon will motivate them to at least visit your website and may turn them into a customer or subscriber.

Be willing to test and track to see what works. You can create a special webpage to drive social networking traffic to. You can even duplicate that page and use a unique URL for each site you participate on. This way you can track your traffic from each post and from each social networking site to see what works. It’s a great way to gain insight to your audience and to ensure you’re optimizing your time and efforts.

First, I was encouraged to sign up for his email list (from Twitter), then (as a result of another Tweet) I was among those who sampled the excellent food on opening day. Then, as the weather became cold, I was drawn in again by a Tweet about "Free fish taco with cup of Taco Soup if you mention you heard about it on Twitter".

Then came the Facebook Fan Page (I think I was the 3rd 'fan'). The most recent stroke of genius is using the Fan Page to announce and register guests for an customer appreciation event. The fact that I haven't gained any weight since June speaks to the quality of the food; guilt free dining, cool!