Use Business and Personal Social Media Profiles

I sometimes see business owners and managers begin to abandon their company Facebook page and primarily use their personal Facebook account to market their business. In the world of small business, this is an effective tactic since their personal Facebook connections are likely some of their biggest supporters and loyal customers. However, there are a few things to keep in mind to ensure you’re not missing out.

Why are folks abandoning Facebook Business pages?

As most of us know by now, Facebook manages your news feed by using fancy ninja-like technology to determine what you want to see from your friends and the pages you like. Why? Well, if they didn’t do this, your news feed would move so fast that you literally wouldn’t be able to read it. You’d see posts about topics you don’t care about (eh-hem, politics), you’d see that friend who’s constantly posting updates about their life including where they are eating, what movie they are watching, and how much they love their significant other every single day. You get the point. So the whole Facebook managing your feed thing isn’t so terrible, is it? Well, businesses don’t always feel that way.

A business can expect on average 2-6 percent of their page followers to see posts when they aren’t promoted or boosted. That’s a pretty frustrating number for those people who are putting a lot of effort into their digital marketing and trying to keep their small business alive and sustainable. However, personal pages might get them a little more reach. So some businesses have stopped posting on their business accounts altogether and are instead promoting their products and services through their personal pages. Like I said, a very engaging tactic and a smart one, indeed. However, it’s important not to abandon Business accounts.

Don't miss out on new prospects.

If you only post to your personal page, you aren’t talking to “new” prospects. Let’s say you are an amazing wedding cake decorator. One of your friends shares a post about how awesome your wedding cakes are by sharing pictures from their daughter’s wedding. One of their friends is like, “Oh wow, that looks amazing. I’m going to check out this cake decorator.” They go to your business page and what do they see? A post from 4 months ago? You immediately look like you’re not open for business or you look like you’re way too busy to entertain new customers.

How to leverage your business and personal social media profiles.

Post to your business account and share the post from your personal page. This will do two things. First, it keeps your business page populated and also continues to raise awareness among your personal network that you own a thriving business. They’ll eventually pick up what you're puttin' down and join in by liking your page, engaging on your business posts, and sharing content from your business account.

Use your personal account to talk very personally to your audience. These friends and acquaintances know you and it's likely that many of them are local to where you live and where your business is located. So the content you share with them might be a little different than the content you post to your business page. For example, if you’re wanting to spread awareness about an event, simply share the event and ask your friends to help you spread the word. Your friends want to see you succeed so they are likely to do what you ask. On the flip side, consider that your business page is going to reach people who like your page, as well as people you've never met in your life, especially if you’re using paid ads and boosting posts. This is a great place to provide helpful content that caters to the interests of people who buy your products and services. They’ll appreciate that content and consider buying from you in the future.

When you’re utilizing your personal social media account to promote your business, always keep in mind that you’re now bringing two worlds together. So, if you tend to be very different “in the office” than “out of the office,” you’ll want to reconsider mixing these two worlds. 

Lastly, be careful not to over post about business on your personal pages. You don’t want to become “that guy.” If you’re only posting about work on your personal pages, your message will become watered down to your friends. When in doubt, use the 80/20 rule, but at a max. For every 4 or 5 personal posts, share a business post.

So the point I'm making here is that using your personal social media to promote your business or your workplace can be a pretty awesome tactic, but don’t abandon your business social media accounts. Find a healthy balance and use both.