Episode 108: 8 Things You Need To Do On Your Facebook Page To Grow Your Pet Business

For most of us, Facebook is one of (if not THE) #1 social media websites that we use in our business. It's such a useful tool for so many things including getting our businesses out there, finding new clients, and even finding new staff. Plus, it's a great way to network with other local businesses in your community to establish those critical relationships. In this week's podcast, I sit down with Erika to discuss 8 things you MUST do well on your business's Facebook page in order to grow your business. Biggest Takeaways You Don't Want To Miss: Facebook is ever-changing, but there are a few aspects of the website that will always stay the same. Facebook will always be focused on community and interaction. Understand that Facebook is meant for people who already know and are following your business - it's not really designed for first-time visitors. Don't forget that Facebook is "borrowed land" - in other words, you need your own website as well!     One of the biggest questions pet business owners ask me is "how do I start more conversations on my Facebook page?" Or, "how do I get more people on my Facebook page?" First and foremost, respond to everyone! You wouldn't like it if you started a conversation with someone and they didn't answer, so don't do it to your Facebook page visitors. Next, invite people to like your page. There are loads of potential people that you could be inviting to like your page.   Aside from our businesses Facebook page, there is another way that you can get more eyes on your brand and content. The best way to do this is to join Facebook groups in your area. Mom groups are especially powerful for pet businesses. Some ideas of useful content to post might be: School bus etiquette for the dog What to do when the dog loses his playmate for school School vacations Kid & dog-friendly restaurants       The biggest mistake business owners make on their Facebook page is not using enough pictures! You absolutely must add a picture to everything you post on your page. Social Media Examiner reports that 74% of social media marketers use visual assets in their social media marketing, ahead of blogs (68%) and videos (60%). BrainRules.net states that "When people here information, they're likely to remember only 10% of that information three days later. However, if a relevant image is paired with that same information, people retain 65% of the information three days later." A final statistics show that "People following directions with text and illustrations do 323% better than people following directions without illustrations." Resources & Links Adobe Spark iMovie Wave.video Visual Content Marketing Statistics Share The Show Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review! Click this link – Bella In Your Business Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section Click on ‘Write a Review’ Transcript: This is episode 108 of Bella In Your Business. The next series of episodes are from a previously recorded live event training series that Erica Goodwin and I did together. The following is a past recording, but the information is just as juicy. I hope you enjoy it. Welcome to Bella In Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready—Bella’s got your chute. Let’s jump. This is the Jump Marketing Training. We're your hosts, Erica Goodwin from Marketing Blog and Bella Vasta from Jump Consulting. Erica is the co-founder of ProPet Software, a kennel management software and pet industry marketing and website professional. Erica: ProPet Software. I know it happens all the time, but it’s okay. Bella: So say it one more time—ProPet Software, not PetPro. Panel management software. And Bella over here is a Pet Business Consultant, speaker, and author, and she’s been helping pet businesses since 2007. Erica: You should see some of the companies she’s worked with—it’s pretty awesome. Bella: Thank you. You guys, typically this training that we’re doing, I mean, Erica and I would probably charge at least a hundred dollars an hour to do this, but it’s actually all coming to you completely free because it’s sponsored by both of our companies. It takes over $200 an episode to produce the show, which sounds crazy, but just trust me when I say that. So I want to thank the fact that we both have these successful businesses providing these awesome services to people. Erica, why don’t you tell them about yours? Erica: Marketing Solutions is my newer company. It’s basically websites for pet businesses. We offer templates at an affordable cost, and then we offer maintenance support on an ongoing monthly fee. Bella: Incredible. Erica also offers a ton of support to her clients, which is one of the ways I got connected with her because my Better Marketing with Bella clients were having her post the blogs that I was giving them. With Better Marketing with Bella, you get Facebook cover videos, square videos, blog posts, emails, branded graphics, coaching calls, and professional editorial photos every single month. This program goes for six months at a time, and you can go to jumpconsulting.net/marketing. For those just joining us, we’re going to talk about the eight things you must be doing well on Facebook to grow your business. You guys might have all heard about this “Facebook apocalypse” that’s been happening and all the algorithm changes. What do we, as pet business owners, need to know? Should we be worried? Erica: Here’s the thing—be calm and Facebook on. Bella: There are two major things Facebook is never going to change—community and interaction. They want you to be building community and for people to be engaging. If you can make those two things happen, you’re golden. Erica: I love that. Bella: When I gave this in Pasadena, people were overwhelmed, but I want you to think of one thing you can walk away with today and actually implement. Then once you get that one done, move on to the others. So, number one: respond to everyone. Erica, how are you today? Erica: I’m good. How are you? Bella: Someone behind you there? What are you doing, ignoring me? I totally just ignored you because that’s what people do online all the time. People ask questions and maybe if they’re good, they’ll hit “like,” but they never engage. What I mean by engage is not just press “like” but comment with a question—get that conversation going. Erica: I’ve been noticing people using commenting bots, and you can tell when it’s not natural. Facebook and Instagram know that too, so you probably get punished. Bella: Exactly. You don’t have to be glued to it all day. If you just sit down for five minutes a day and actually reply, it’ll make a difference. Number two: invite people to like your page. Erica: Most people don’t realize that if someone likes your photo or post but hasn’t liked your page, you can invite them right there. Bella: If you’re trying to get likes on your page, don’t go into Facebook groups and ask other pet sitters to like your page. That’ll tank your engagement because they won’t comment daily. Instead, invite people who have already liked your posts. Number three: join groups in your area. Erica: There are groups for every dog park, and they’re always asking for sitters or groomers. Bella: Yes! And some sitters like Maureen and Katie even created their own city pet groups. They made them about the whole community—not just themselves—and built trust. If you’re not ready to start your own group, at least get involved in others. You can even connect with the admins, offer to guest blog, or provide helpful resources. Erica: People buy from those they like and trust. Bella: Exactly. Anna asked if you can join these groups under your business page. No—you need to use your personal account. You can post as your business in your own group, but people want to interact with you, not a logo. Jay said he has a Cat Lovers group that works great for him—awesome example. Now, what’s the one thing people neglect when they post on Facebook? Add a picture! Here’s the hierarchy of Facebook: video is number one, then pictures, then text. Erica: Posting blog links has dropped in visibility. I now post a photo with the link in the caption—it performs way better. Bella: Exactly. Facebook doesn’t want you dragging people back to your blog anymore. Use video. Erica: Upload directly to Facebook, not YouTube links. Bella: And video cover profiles are another game changer—they make you stand out. I created mine in 15 minutes using Wave.video, splicing together stock clips. You can use Adobe Spark, Wave.video, or iMovie. Erica: It’s a great way to show behind-the-scenes of your business and make a strong first impression. Bella: Exactly. Next, let’s talk about bots. Bots can be super helpful—even a simple autoresponder that says, “Hey, our hands are full, but for a quicker response, email us.” Or, you can set up an interactive bot campaign offering free PDFs like “10 Best Dog Hiking Trails in Our City.” Bots have a 70–80% open rate—crazy good! Erica: And they feel more personal than emails because they appear like a message. Bella: Exactly. Now, reviews. Don’t be afraid to ask for them. If a client messages you saying, “You’re amazing,” reply, “Thank you so much! Would you mind copying that into our Facebook or Google reviews?” Erica: We include that in thank-you emails too—it works. And Google reviews also help with SEO. Bella: You can also screenshot messages and post them as authentic testimonials on your page—people love reading them. Now, creating videos. You don’t have to be on camera. You can use Facebook or Instagram stories,