Tan France is an entrepreneur and author and host of Boos with Facebook’s Boost My Business web series that people can watch through Facebook Watch. On the other hand, Ryan Cobbins is the owner of the coffee shop center in Denver, Colorado called Coffee at the Point. Together, these two discuss everything about how a small business could flourish.
Below are the insights of the two dynamic entrepreneurs:
Tip 1. Look Beyond the Business That You Believe You Were Destined to Have
France said that the advice that he gives to anyone that he speaks to as a business, especially on his show Boost My Business is that they have to get over with whatever business they think they are destined to have.
He used an old business as a personal example. At first, that business’s bread and butter when swimwear was very popular. Even though France does not know much about swimming attire, he clearly knew that he wanted to enter that business.
France thought that if he is going to make his business work, swimwear is a category that he should include in order to make sales during summer.
Moreover, he said that he thinks letting go of his initial dream and learning to adapt to the actual customer base is the most important advice that he can give anyone.
Tip 2. Embrace Your Local Community
France also said that if you found a way within your local community to really get them involved, then there is a great chase that you will see greater results.
France added that he thinks the beauty of where people live is that they have other people who understand who they are and what they are trying to achieve.
Tip 3. Keep Reminding Yourself That Nobody Starts Out Perfect
According to Cobbins, one of his -philosophies even before he opened a business is that “Before I was good, I was bad.”
Back then, he knew that he wanted to do something. However, he thought that what he was going to do would not make a difference. He also thought that he was going to be horrible at first before he gets better over time.
Cobbins said that his coffee shop was no exception. He added that there was o cookie cutter way for him when he set his coffee shop up. He feels blessed to see some of the things that he tried hard to work out. This helped him get where he needed to be.
He was also reminded by several books that he has read to keep putting one of his feet ahead of the other. In addition, in order to become successful, he has to double his rate of failure.
Tip 4. Study and Understand Your Target Demographic
France noted that it is important to understand your demographic or the demographic that you know you need to hit. He explained that when he was building his business, he was aware that he did not need to target the entire world using marketing and advertising. Rather, he turned to people that he knew would be the most interested.
This means that you need to forget everyone else for now. What you need to do is to focus on the people that you know will respond well to the product that you are offering.
Additional Tips for Small Businesses on Facebook
1. Use An Attention-grabbing Cover Photo
When people land on your business’s Facebook page, your cover photo is one of the first things that they will notice. For this reason, it is important to make an intriguing cover photo that tells your customers a story.
In addition, one of the features of Facebook is that when someone follows your page, your profile picture and cover photo will show up on their timeline. This means more visibility.
Another thing worth noting is that photos capture more audience attention compared to other types of posts. In fact, a study found out that photos get 53 percent more likes, 84 percent more click-throughs, and 104 percent more comments.
2. Create Some Smart Content
Content curation allows you to appear active on Facebook with not so much effort. It also lets you build relationships with people and with your customers.
However, how do you curate content for the industry you are in? The answer is simple. You can spend time reading through various resources on the internet. This will help you identify who the influencers and leaders in your industry are.
Moreover, the main goal of content curation is to be the one-stop destination where your target audience can get all the information they need. For this reason, you need to cover every possible current concern that your target audience might have.
3. Utilize Facebook Live and Buy Facebook Followers
One great thing about going live on Facebook is that it comes very close to actual face to face interaction. So, if you are trying to connect with your fans, Facebook Live can provide you with the best real results. Start off easy and buy yourself real Facebook followers so your new visitors see some traction from the beginning.
When you are planning to do a live broadcast, choose where you will be focusing in advance. Carefully pick your title because this is what your views will see in the notifications when you go live.
In addition, it is important that you choose a device that has a great audio setup. This way, your viewers will be able to hear you clearly. Apart from that, make sure to end your live broadcast with a call to action, such as Sign Up, Learn More, and Shop Now.
There are a lot of topics that you can talk about during your live broadcast. For instance, you can do a Q&A session. This way, you will be able to address the concerns of your fans.
You see, Facebook offers a lot of opportunities for more businesses. You just have to be creative and use the advice given by Tan France and Ryan Cobbins in order to succeed.
